England wicket-keeper-bat Ben Foakes suggested that a change in mindset is aiding the visiting side’s batters in overcoming the challenges of playing on turning pitches in India. He emphasised the fact that there is now no fear of playing on turning tracks.
“It’s more of a mindset shift of how to go about it, because in those conditions the bowler is a massive favourite to win the contest.. It’s how many blows you can put in,” he said to BBC.
“Before, there was a fear of getting out and that put us in our shells. Now it’s not worrying that you are getting out and accepting that you probably are on those sorts of surfaces. You can actually go and dominate at times as well.
“Quite a few of the lads have a game plan that will do well on those pitches.”
Reflecting on the 2021 tour, where England and India played four Tests across only two venues due to COVID-19 restrictions, Foakes observed those decks were ‘raging bunsens’. The first Test was played on a relatively flat Chennai wicket, but the subsequent three Tests were played on challenging pitches. After winning the first Test, England went on to lose the next three.
“The first Test was played on a flat wicket and then they went to raging ‘bunsens. All three were probably the worst pitches I’ve batted on,” he noted.
In the ongoing Test series versus India, despite being initially outplayed on the first two days of the opening game, England staged a remarkable comeback, with Ollie Pope’s 196 and a superb five-wicket haul from debutant Tom Hartley, securing the tourists a memorable win. Both teams now will prepare for the second Test in Visakhapatnam, scheduled to commence on Friday, February 2.