London: Playing an extra batsman in the second Test against England will be a ‘conservative move’ with the Lord’s pitch looking more bowler-friendly than Edgbaston, according to India bowling coach Bharat Arun.
Interestingly, Sunil Gavaskar has been the biggest advocate of playing an extra batsman after India’s poor show in the series opener.
“Playing an extra batsman in Lord’s, I would consider it as a conservative move. I think everything depends on the conditions and they are not going to be as friendly as it was in the first Test, it makes more sense to play five bowlers (here),” Arun said during a press conference.
In the first Test, the Indian batsmen were seen pushing hard at swinging deliveries but Arun defended them.
“The batsmen played a lot forward in Birmingham and they did it in the practice game as well. They feel they have a lot more options in doing that rather than staying back inside the crease,” Arun pointed out.
He further explained the reason for expansive front foot movement. “You are cutting the amount of swing that the bowler can get by going further up and closer to the ball. I guess it worked pretty well for the batsmen (thus far),” Arun added.
Arun also expressed satisfaction after the bowlers once again took 20 wickets in a Test match outside the sub-continent. This is the fourth consecutive Test match after three in South Africa where the bowlers have bowled out the opposition twice.
“We can’t ask for anything better. There is still room for improvement but the bowlers did a good job. There was huge improvement from the first innings to the second and that was extremely welcome,” Arun asserted.
The square at Lord’s (venue for the second Test) bore a dry look Tuesday, with a variety of heavily used wickets. Arun informed that any call on team combination will be taken Wednesday. He however, did not divulge whether either Ravindra Jadeja or Kuldeep Yadav will be taken as an additional spinner. “It’s a good choice (to pick between Kuldeep and Ravindra), a tough one too. Depending on the conditions and the team, we’ll take a call on that,” said Arun.
Bumrah unavailable
India will not get the services of Jasprit Bumrah for the second Test against England as he is yet to recover from a left hand fracture sustained during a T20 International against Ireland in June. BCCI had earlier said the pacer would be fit before the Lord’s game. “He (Burmrah) is bowling fit right now but it’s too early to put him into a game-like situation. The plaster on his hand needs to come off first. He is out of contention for the second Test,” bowling coach Bharat Arun said Tuesday.