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A stunning batting onslaught and England turned the tie on its head in the longest format. How often we have come across such scripts in Tests lately? Since the arrival of former New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum, England batters have been expressing themselves freely by playing quick-fire knocks in the longest format of the game. McCullum aka Baz is fondly known for promoting the aggressive brand of playing cricket – Bazball.
With superstar Ben Stokes at the helm, England will utilise their recent Bazball success against India in the upcoming Test series. Bazball-friendly England ended its previous series against India level-pegging at home. Hosts India are yet to record a series trounce since the 2012-2013 season. Not long ago, former England skipper Nasser Hussain had advised Rohit Sharma’s Team India against preparing turning pitches for the five-Test series.
‘India are the favourites but…’
Speaking to Sky Sports in the lead-up to the series, Hussain opined that India will be favourites in its backyard. However, the former cricketer also warned India against writing off England’s chances away from home. “India are the favourites, but every single challenge Bazball has faced they’ve stuck to their guns and Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s record is seriously good, I wouldn’t write them off. Bazball has been very successful, especially at home, and the two toughest places to tour are India or Australia,” Hussain said.
India have named spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel in its squad for the first two Test against England. The hosts are without senior pacer Mohammed Shami, who is still recovering from an ankle injury. Pace ace Jasprit Bumrah was named India’s vice-captain for the five-game series. India’s spin attack also features veteran all-rounders Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.
‘Going to be a massive challenge for England’
Wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel has earned his maiden call-up for the Test series. Besides gloveman KS Bharat, India also have a backup keeper in the form of KL Rahul. India and England will meet in the Test series opener at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Thursday. “It’s going to be a massive challenge for England. India want to see how this new approach will work at home. It will be fascinating cricket and will be interesting to see how this particular side will go against what is one of the great cricketing outfits at the moment, which is the India side,” the former England skipper added.
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