Dissecting the test defeat

[SK_IH]

Firstly I have to say test cricket is becoming competitive again. Unlike previous decade wherein opposition used to get demolished on overseas tours, this decade has started on a promising note. Teams are not only competitive but defeating the home teams.

 

Now onto the match, i thought India had self inflicted damage with the kind of XI that was played. It was a team made based on theory rather than practice, otherwise no argument can justify Nadeem leapfrogging Kuldeep in the XI. India made another mistake of gong in with Sundar as the 5th bowler which was a massive blunder considering the fact the captain markedly had absolutely no trust in his abilities. So, overall India played this match with a bowler short.

Also, the approach of the team on the first which Virat rightly pointed out in the post match presentation. The team bore body language of a team that falsely predicted the English batsmen would throw their wickets on a good pitch. They were sadly mistaken & that first day was where game was lost. 

I think things are clear, in absence of Jadeja & Shami, two absolute match winners, India have to be precise in their bowling selections. Cannot pick bowlers for the sake of it.

And England batsman/team are here for a slugfest. Plans have to be put in place to counter their sweeping/reverse sweeping tactics. They will not be bulldozed by fear of spinners. 

I ll not too harsh on our team, these blips can happen but how they make plans to counter England would be interesting.

[SK_IH]

Also, India had some freak dismissals in their first innings that derailed the innings & match. It was a clear case of everything that could go wrong was going wrong. However, I have no sympathy for that phoney Rahane, he continues to hog that crucial spot in the middle order with zero consistency.

[rkt.india]

India's poor first innings, 77/4, match was lost there.

[SK_IH]

Just now, rkt.india said:

India's poor first innings, 77/4, match was lost there.

Still could have been avoided if Pujara didn't had that freak dismissal. But I would say match was lost even before that on the first day. Indians lacked plans on 1st day & were literally swept aside by Root 

[The Realist]

To summarise:

 

Batting is weak - lack opener and VC is in semi-retirement

Fielding sucks

Bowling lacks depth and penetration 

Captain lacks brains and has a negative influence that undermines the younger players

[SK_IH]

Also I forgot the no ball deluge. How the * that happened is beyond comprehension.

[rkt.india]

2 minutes ago, SK_IH said:

Still could have been avoided if Pujara didn't had that freak dismissal. But I would say match was lost even before that on the first day. Indians lacked plans on 1st day & were literally swept aside by Root 

Indian conditions first day are like that. They capitalised on that.

[Sooda]

2 minutes ago, rkt.india said:

Indian conditions first day are like that. They capitalised on that.

 

What did you make of Virats captaincy though, fielding placings ? Felt like we went defensive early, almost giving up on taking a wicket. Could have targeted Sibley with a leg slip and / or short leg much more or earlier

[Sooda]

16 minutes ago, SK_IH said:

Firstly I have to say test cricket is becoming competitive again. Unlike previous decade wherein opposition used to get demolished on overseas tours, this decade has started on a promising note. Teams are not only competitive but defeating the home teams.

 

Now onto the match, i thought India had self inflicted damage with the kind of XI that was played. It was a team made based on theory rather than practice, otherwise no argument can justify Nadeem leapfrogging Kuldeep in the XI. India made another mistake of gong in with Sundar as the 5th bowler which was a massive blunder considering the fact the captain markedly had absolutely no trust in his abilities. So, overall India played this match with a bowler short.

Also, the approach of the team on the first which Virat rightly pointed out in the post match presentation. The team bore body language of a team that falsely predicted the English batsmen would throw their wickets on a good pitch. They were sadly mistaken & that first day was where game was lost. 

I think things are clear, in absence of Jadeja & Shami, two absolute match winners, India have to be precise in their bowling selections. Cannot pick bowlers for the sake of it.

And England batsman/team are here for a slugfest. Plans have to be put in place to counter their sweeping/reverse sweeping tactics. They will not be bulldozed by fear of spinners. 

I ll not too harsh on our team, these blips can happen but how they make plans to counter England would be interesting.

 

 

I thought the same re: Kuldeep that he should play instead of Sundar. But Manjrekar and Bell made a couple of good points : firstly if he came in for Nadeem the fact that him and two offies mean we have three spinners who spin it the same way. Secondly one of the issues with him is his lack of pace. And on a slow wicket that will just get worse, even if the batsmen cant read him they will have ample time to adjust after the ball pitches.

 

Certainly brings to light our lack of depth in spin bowling department.

[Ankit_sharma03]

1st let me iron out few things since few bad threads are made- its a game one will win and other will loose. Both teams comes with a plan and one will click better so dont get into crap like they became casual and all

 

Now

 

• 2 man attack - only bumrah n ashwin looked threatening, Ishant bowled well but his bowling isnt as threatning as of umesh n shami in these conditions. So opposition had breathing space
• England put runs on board and thats more then half the battle won 
• Rahane was already weak in these condition but VK problem against spin seems to be increasing day by day 

[SK_IH]

17 minutes ago, rkt.india said:

Indian conditions first day are like that. They capitalised on that.

I agree toss is a major factor but the Indian team had no plans. They were waiting for England batsman to give up against the spinners. They have to more proactive in next test if they lose the toss again.

[SK_IH]

12 minutes ago, Sooda said:

 

 

I thought the same re: Kuldeep that he should play instead of Sundar. But Manjrekar and Bell made a couple of good points : firstly if he came in for Nadeem the fact that him and two offies mean we have three spinners who spin it the same way. Secondly one of the issues with him is his lack of pace. And on a slow wicket that will just get worse, even if the batsmen cant read him they will have ample time to adjust after the ball pitches.

 

Certainly brings to light our lack of depth in spin bowling department.

We all have to remember his last bowling spell in test cricket was a 5fer. He has been sidelined ever since in tests. He may be slow through the air but still has the guile. If TM doesn't rate him at all I don't see any reason why is being carried out on various tours 

[rkt.india]

3 minutes ago, SK_IH said:

I agree toss is a major factor but the Indian team had no plans. They were waiting for England batsman to give up against the spinners. They have to more proactive in next test if they lose the toss again.

We did miss Shami's reverse in these conditions. 

[express bowling]

40 minutes ago, SK_IH said:

 

 

India made another mistake of gong in with Sundar as the 5th bowler which was a massive blunder considering the fact the captain markedly had absolutely no trust in his abilities. So, overall India played this match with a bowler short.

 

 

The 5th bowler is not supposed to be a frontline bowler. He is usually a batsman who bowls a bit. And many good teams don't have the 5th bowling option even.

 

The 5th bowler, if there at all, is there to provide rest to the 4 main bowlers.

 

Nadeem was the weak point 

 

The mistake Kohli made was bowling Nadeem and Sundar in tandem in many crucial stages of the match.

[Lone Wolf]

We are playing two guys who are past it in Test cricket..  Rohit Idk wth he's doing repairing his test Career at 34 years? He neither has patience nor a good defence.  Rahane will milk MCG Ton for a while so brace yourself.  Kohli is done against spin..  Bess is so **** ordinary fgs..  Steve o keefe was much better. 

 

Nadeem zero ability with bat & big failure with ball.  Our weak Tail is the reason Sundar missed his Ton & we failed to bat out Time.  Umesh Shami used to smack it & score handy runs but Bumrah & Ishant don't even have a batswing ffs.   

 

Jaddu is a big miss need I say more. 

In India Umesh Shami > Ishant & Boom( he has to learn fast & use bouncers ffs)

 

Kohli's f** captaincy is an icing on the cake.  

 

[SK_IH]

7 minutes ago, express bowling said:

 

 

The 5th bowler is not supposed to be a frontline bowler. He is usually a batsman who bowls a bit. And many good teams don't have the 5th bowling option even.

 

The 5th bowler, if there at all, is there to provide rest to the 4 main bowlers.

 

Nadeem was the weak point 

 

The mistake Kohli made was bowling Nadeem and Sundar in tandem in many crucial stages of the match.

5th bowling option had no support of the captain I thought. If Pandya is bowling fit he has to play that role.

[sage]

It's impossible to remove Rahane since he literally captained India to the victory in Aus

[The Realist]

Also there are too many passengers in the team - Rohit Sharma, Rahane, Nadeem. Question marks against Ishant Sharma's effectiveness. 

 

Can't expect to win games when a third of the team is AWOL.

[BacktoCricaddict]

Some people mentioned fielding, but as an afterthought.  To me, the vast difference in fielding outcomes between the two sides is one of two major causes for the defeat (other being Nadeem's selection).  If India had held on to at least 1-2 of the half-chances that came their way, England would have made 100 fewer runs in their 1st innings.  Also, from an intangibles standpoint, it gives life to tired team-mates and the bowling unit.

 

Sometimes, we ask the question "who wanted it more?"  Answer: The side that does the basics right and gives full effort on the field.  It was England in this case. 

 

Gawd, I miss Jadeja.

 

 

Edited February 9, 2021 by BacktoCricaddict

[nitinbwj]

Win the damn toss first ..