Jasprit Bumrah will be the key bowler for India if they have to counter England’s Bazball approach during the upcoming five-match Test series. In addition to Bumrah, former England batsman Nick Knight believes that if India has to win the series, they have to play Kuldeep Yadav when conditions justify the inclusion of a frontline spinner. In an interview with The Indian Express, Knight also listed out the possible challenges for young captain Shubman Gill.
It will be a mouth-watering contest. My gut feeling is that if this contest were happening two years ago or a year ago, England would look to take Bumrah down by being ultra-aggressive. Now, it might be that they absorb the spell from Bumrah. As a general rule, would they be ultra-aggressive against Bumrah? Probably not.
I don’t think England are going to go into their team meetings and say, right, let’s take on Bumrah. I mean, there probably will be one spell when they do, because he might not be feeling great, the wicket might be flat. Root versus Bumrah is going to be the battle. If I were Gill, I would probably make Bumrah bowl as many balls in the series to Joe Root.
At the WTC final, the Lord’s wicket was slow. Do you think Indian spinners will come into play?
It is quite warm, sunny and humid here in the UK. So the pitches are going to be very dry, potentially. Historically, at Edgbaston, you see a turn. At Old Trafford, you get a bounce and turn. I would be surprised if England don’t play Shoaib Bashir if the pitches stay dry. India will very likely play Ravindra Jadeja, but I would be looking for every opportunity to play Kuldeep Yadav. England will find it hard against Kuldeep. If Kuldeep is on top of his game, that could be a defining moment in the series, or moments, because England likes to be aggressive. When you want to be aggressive, you have to be certain about which way the ball is turning. If there is a little bit of assistance from the pitch, Kuldeep will be able to bowl all his varieties.
How do you think the pitches will be?
Overall, they will be good pitches for cricket. England’s great strength is their ability to out-bat the opposition. I don’t think they want to play on green-seaming wickets. They might leave some grass on because it helps them to get carry. You have got the best bowler in the world (Bumrah) playing against them.
Without James Anderson and Stuart Broad, where will England get the 20 wickets from?
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Chris Woakes becomes a major player. If everyone were fit, England would like to hit India with pace. They would go with Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Mark Wood, and Olly Stone. Woakes will now be a key player with the new ball. Josh Tongue might start as well. Then you go into the Brydon Carse. Jamie Overton as an option. Then Stokes. So the whole pack is very good.
It has been almost three years since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes took over. How has Bazball evolved?
The keywords I would use are evolve and refine. At times initially it was quite extreme. My view is that you need to go through those extremes to realise where the balance is. Play with a fearless nature, have lots of fun and be entertaining, which is good for the game. But they are judged by results. I don’t think it’s complete (refinement), but I think it’s a long way further forward than it was a year or two ago. I think now what you see is that there are periods where they do absorb pressure rather than just keep being ultra-aggressive when under pressure. They are a very tough side to play against.
Sai Sudharsan has been in good form in the recent IPL. How do you think he will fare in England?
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I know he has played a bit for Surrey in domestic cricket here. I know he is a little bit aware of the Duke’s ball and how it will behave. I know he has taken some Duke’s balls back to India to practice. I like that sort of stuff. He is trying to get ahead of the group. He is a tall guy and can balance very well. That is the one thing that becomes essential. You can’t play the early line. You have to play late and watch the ball move off the pitch, watch it move in the air laterally. If your balance is not correct, you are moving one way, and the ball is going the other way. I like his balance. I would play him in that top order.
What is your take on Shubman Gill, the captain?
Shubman’s big challenge is making sure now that he is captain, he is giving himself enough time to prepare for his own game. He is a very fine player. England would try and work at the top of the off stump, and the ball coming back into him a little bit, nipping back in off the seam. On occasion, he just pushes that front leg across a little bit to play around it. And just generally, the weight of expectation that he will have on his shoulders. In cricket, there is no more vulnerable side than the side whose captain is struggling.