Indian skipper Virat Kohli has hinted that team management might not go with Ravichandran Ashwin as Shardul Thakur’s replacement and stick with the combination of four seamers in the second Test match at Lords.
Thakur, who was picked for last week’s first Test due to his ability to bat, has been ruled out of second Test due to myofascial strain on his left hamstring.
“Shardul brings in more batting ability [to the side]. But having said that, from the batting point of view we are well placed because Pujara, Jinks (Ajinkya Rahane) and myself… Rohit and KL played very well [in the first Test]. So we are comfortable with where we are placed as a batting unit and we don’t feel we might be a batsman short if Shardul doesn’t play,” added Kohli.
The 32-year-old Kohli said the priority of the team is to pick 20 wickets of the opposition.
“For us, it is about finding that perfect balance. But if someone like Shardul is not available, we will definitely look at first how to pick 20 wickets, and not try to plug in another guy who can give us runs with the bat. We feel very comfortable with how the first Test went,” added Kohli of the possibility of fielding four pacers and a spinner.
“Four fast bowlers mean that you can apply pressure through the day in every session. You basically take field thinking that the fourth guy comes in and does the job of being very consistent. We are definitely not going to underbowl anyone. In a four-bowler combination, you have to figure which bowler is most likely to give you breakthroughs and which ones are going to contain. According to that, you put them in priority,” added the 32-year-old.
“The guy who is more likely to contain, then comes in and bowls spells which don’t leak runs so that others can come back and get you those breakthroughs. So we definitely like playing in that kind of template and we have never felt that when we have played four [pace] bowlers and underbowled anyone. We have felt very balanced [when] we have played four bowlers (pacers) because we are constantly looking to create pressure and take wickets.”
The second Test match will start on Thursday at Lord’s, London.
