Indian team is set for the upcoming five-match Test series against England starting August 4. Virat and company are without a fast-bowling all-rounder in England that can be a fret.
Talking about the all-rounder list team has Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja as a supreme option for the place but there is no option of having a seam bowler who can also bat with full confidence apart from Shardul Thakur who might not make it to the final eleven due to many senior players in the bowling order.
But at best, India can try Mumbai player Shardul Thakur who scored a half-century and picked wickets in the fourth and final Test against Australia in Brisbane.
“A seam-bowling all-rounder brings a lot of balance to a squad overseas, especially in England. If you have a bowling all-rounder – say like Kapil Dev — he will get you wickets and score 40-50 runs, maybe even a 100. Those 40-50 runs can mean a partnership of 100,” said former India seam-bowling all-rounder Madan Lal, who was part of India’s 1983 World Cup-winning squad.
“India need a seam bowling all-rounder. I think Hardik Pandya needs to bowl if he has to make it and that can make a difference,” he added.
“It is a valid point (the need for a seam bowling all-rounder). Whenever we have done well in England, we have done well on the back of good pace bowling all-round options. In 1986, we had Roger Binny, Kapil Dev, Madan Lal and Mohinder Amarnath along with me. There were so many options to pick from,” said former India all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar recalling the three-Test series that India won 2-0.
“In 1990, Kapil and I were there. With all-rounders, I mean someone who can bat as a batsman and bowl like a bowler in Test matches,” added Prabhakar.
