Prior to the first IND vs NZ Test in Bengaluru, there was a lot of talk about, if the weather would permit India to script yet another win at home, that could take them to 19th consecutive series win at home. But Rohit Sharma’s “bowl first” blunder too costly, as the team was all out for 46 in the first innings. From there on, 150 from Sarfaraz Khan and 99 from Rishabh Pant couldn’t save India.
And India is to blame for this debacle. Now, the time has come for the second Test in Pune, starting Thursday, and the pressure will be on the hosts, to not only make a comeback, but also win the series from here. With spinning track at their disposal in Pune, that might just be possible.
IND vs NZ 2nd Test, Who Would be India’s Spinners?
Now, after the slip up in the first Test, the question that emerges is — Will India go with Kuldeep Yadav or with Axar Patel? Even Washington Sundar is in the mix. He strengthens the batting as well, while the same cannot be said about Kuldeep. There could be another approach as well, where the team decides to go with only one pacer in Jasprit Bumrah.
But that is unlikely to happen, given the workload management for the best bowler in the world. As for New Zealand, somehow, they seem to be ticking the boxes right now, as William O Rourke and Tim Southee seem to be making the cut, along with Ajaz Patel, Glenn Philipps, and Rachin Ravindra.
Sarfaraz Khan vs KL Rahul
Despite scoring a 150 in the Bengaluru Test, there are signs that the Indian team management will go with KL Rahul in the middle-order. A debatable decision but that has been the case with the think tank, when it comes to Rahul, who has only 2981 runs in 53 Tests, at an average of 33.
WTC Final at Stake
This is a crucial Test for the Indian team, as a slip up will not only result in a series loss at home after 2012, but also would mean that they would have to win six out of six to make it to the final of WTC, for the third successive time.
Probable XI: Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Washington Sundar/Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj/Akash Deep
Probable XI: Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell, Glenn Phillips, Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel
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