Nottingham: Shaken by abject surrender in the first two Tests, a desperate India are expected to ring in a slew of changes as they aim at redemption against a rampaging England in a do-or-die third Test, starting here Saturday.
For Indian team, the Trent Bridge Test will be their last chance to save the series after being outplayed in the first two Test matches – by 31 runs at Edgbaston and innings and 159 runs at the Lord’s.
Down 0-2 with only five and half days of competitive cricket in all, skipper Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri will be aiming to get the team combination right having bungled at the Lord’s.
As a result, India will play their 38th combination in as many matches that skipper Kohli had led. The most awaited change will be 20-year-old Rishabh Pant’s imminent Test debut replacing a horribly out-of-form Dinesh Karthik, who might well have played his last international game in the longest format.
With scores of zero, 20, one and zero in four innings coupled with shoddy glovework meant that Karthik was seen giving catching practice to Pant, who also spend considerable time batting at the nets.
Being hailed as MS Dhoni’s successor, Pant’s entry into the squad happened after three half centuries in the two first class matches against England Lions.
Despite a triple hundred and a healthy first class average of 54-plus, it will still be baptism by fire for the Roorkee-born youngster. He will be facing Messrs Jimmy Anderson, Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes, Ben Stokes and Sam Curran, ready to make life miserable for him just like they have done with his illustrious seniors.
If Pant’s Test debut has generated a lot of interest, there is a prayer on every fan’s lips that skipper Kohli gets fit enough to wield the willow. It is the impact of the last defeat in swing-friendly conditions across just over six sessions that is still hurting the Indian camp. Throughout the week, they have been left picking up the pieces, mostly in terms of re-evaluating fitness of their key players.
In that aspect at least, there is some good news. Jasprit Bumrah is fit again; Ravichandran Ashwin and Hardik Pandya have recovered completely from their hand injuries suffered while batting at Lord’s, and skipper Kohli has more or less recovered from his back problems.
Never has an injury invoked so much interest since Sachin Tendulkar’s tennis elbow. Kohli’s condition seemed to have improved a lot and as he had maintained, he will be out there at the toss alongside Joe Root.
Stokes replaces Curran
Nottingham: All-rounder Ben Stokes has been included in the playing-XI for the third Test against India at the Trent Bridge here, four days after being found not guilty of affray. He replaced Sam Curran for the match, starting Saturday. The 27-year-old missed the second Test at the Lord’s due to his trial for his involvement in a fracas in Bristol in September.