It is pretty given that the Indian Cricket Team will opt for four pacers in the IND vs SA 1st Test match. While Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj will spearhead the pace attack and Shardul Thakur as the 4th pacer, there is a big selection headache between Mukesh Kumar and Prasidh Krishna.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma claimed that both Mukesh and Prasidh are two different kinds of bowlers and there is discussion among the team in terms of their selection.
“It is a very tough call for us to pick between the two (Mukesh Kumar and Prasidh Krishna). We have to see what the team needs and how the pitch behaves. They are different bowlers and we are discussion about the same,” Rohit Sharma said at the Pre match Press Conference.
It is a given fact that India will go out with all guns blazing. With South Africa’s pitch offering more for fast bowlers, Ravichandran Ashwin will have to be left out on the bench. Shardul Thakur comes in as the fourth pacer. Ravindran Jadeja will be the lone spinner in the team.
But the selection headache remains for both Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid to choose between Mukesh Kumar and Prasidh Krishna.
“I have spoken with Rahul Dravid and KL Rahul. The last time we played here, KL scored a century. So we discussed how the pitch changed on the days. We have taken his feedback and we are thinking what to do next,”
“Both are different bowlers. Prasidh is a tall, hit the deck bowler. He can extract a lot from the pitch. Mukesh has been impressive for the last 6-8 months. It depends on how the wicket behaves and what we want. We have Siraj and Bumrah and they know what the team expects from them. Now it is important to see what kind of a bowler we need, a seam bowler or a swing bowler. 75% it is decided, but we will decide it today in the evening, during the team meeting,” Rohit concluded.
