For the first time in the MS Dhoni’s captaincy, India has lost two consecutive tests which bring them to the verge of their maiden test series defeat. Such has been the dominance of the English side that even the World Cup champions are now in the danger zone of 4-0 whitewash. So they need a turnaround of massive proportions to change their fortunes. On the other hand, England have had a near perfect series thus far. Everytime they have been under pressure, they have fought back like champions to rescue the situation, and there is no dearth of heroes in this exceptional side. There is mixed news for the Indian fans heading into the 3rd Test at Edgbaston. The return of one of the most successful opening combinations in Indian Test history, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, will certainly be a big boost to the side.
However, the news that pace spearhead Zaheer Khan has broken down again, after bowling just 3 overs in the practice match against Northamptonshire, will be a huge blow.
Zaheer is out of the rest of the Tour and will be replaced by RP Singh, who had an excellent Test series the last time India toured England.
The visitors failed to utilize the tour game against Northamptonshire to their advantage with Abhinav Mukund the only man scoring any runs and Amit Mishra the sole person with respectable bowling figures. Now the Indians must pull up their socks as they look to avert their first series defeat since 2008. The familiar sight of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir opening the innings will be a welcome relief to the Indian camp. India would be looking towards the left-right duo to put up a big opening stand on which they can build a huge score. Tendulkar and Laxman managed half centuries in the second test, but they need to convert them into triple figure scores to put the England team under pressure. The inability of Suresh Raina and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni to bat in English conditions is one more concern. While the batmen are struggling for form, the bowlers are doing overtime, playing each match a bowler short. With Zaheer Khan’s tour coming to a an end, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma and S Sreesanth, all of whom did a reasonable job are likely to continue to be India’s first choice seamers.
For England, Ravi Bopara has been drafted into the England squad in place of the injured Jonathan Trott, who given his recent run of form, is likely to be sorely missed. Other than the absence of Trott, England really are well blessed in all departments. They bat all the way down to no.10 and their bowling has variety, quality and bench strength. However, The openers haven’t been at their best and have faced problems against the moving ball. In middle order there are Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen, Ravi Bopara and Eoin Morgan, with all having a capability to play long innings but are inconsistent in recent past. But the hunger for runs shown by wicketkeeper batsman Matt Prior and the long English tail has masked the failures of their regular batsmen.
England’s bowling has been outstanding in the series so far and they have been all over the famed Indian batting lineup, not once allowing the unit to go past 300. The only concern now is the form of Graeme Swann, who was cantered around by the Indians on his home ground. But Swann, considered the best exponent of his craft at the moment, should be able to bounce back in Edgbaston as conditions will be slightly more helpful. All in all, England are on a roll and have simply outplayed the Indians in every department. The home team on current form should be runaway favourites but the Indians will be hoping that some of their big names shine with the bat to enable them to compete.
