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PHOTOS: Team India practice at Lord's ahead of second Test
Team India started their preparations for the second Test match against England at Lord's with a gruelling nets session on Wednesday where they gave ample indications that they may continue with the five bowler theory.
- Should Kohli replace Dhoni as India's Test captain?
The first Test at Nottingham had ended in a draw on Sunday with the slow and low pitch at Trent Bridge coming in for a lot of criticism. And unless the Lord's pitch is dramatically different, both teams look keen to continue with their five-pronged bowling attack, including four pace bowlers.
India handed a Test debut to all-rounder Stuart Binny in the first Test but the flat pitch prevented him from displaying his medium-swing abilities to the full as he was used sparringly in the England first innings. He did make good use of the opportunity to bat in the second innings, scoring his maiden Test fifty and steering his team out of trouble on the fifth and final day after the visitors had lost a few quick wickets.
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PHOTOS: Team India practice at Lord's ahead of second Test
At Lord's the Indian batting line-up worked hard on their basics as they underwent a hectic net session with openers Shikhar Dhawan and Murali Vijay getting things underway followed by Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane.
- Should Kohli replace Dhoni as India's Test captain?
Kohli, who failed in both the innings in the first Test, then had another session with fielding coach Trevor Penney, who gave him practice against throw-downs on a particular line and length.
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PHOTOS: Team India practice at Lord's ahead of second Test
The highlight of this net session though was off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin bowling to captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni with left-hander Ravindra Jadeja batting in the adjacent nets. Binny batted next followed by the batting duo of Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir, who were both left out the first match, after the first eleven from the Nottingham Test had finished their session.
- Should Kohli replace Dhoni as India's Test captain?
The Indian team rarely gives any hints in their practice sessions, but two days before the match, it can be safely said that they are likely to continue with the five-bowler theory. And by the looks of it, Binny and Jadeja are still in line ahead of Ashwin.
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PHOTOS: Team India practice at Lord's ahead of second Test
The Lord's pitch showcased a tinge of green in the morning, but that is expected to disappear by time of the toss. The wickets at this venue historically flatten out as the match progresses and hence it will not be a surprise if India retain their eleven from the last match.
- Should Kohli replace Dhoni as India's Test captain?
It heaps more pressure on the five frontline batsmen, with Dhoni batting at No. 6 followed by the all-rounder duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Binny. However, the superb performance of their lower order with the bat in Nottingham especially Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who hit two half-centuries batting at No. 9, should be a comforting factor for Dhoni.
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PHOTOS: Team India practice at Lord's ahead of second Test
England batsman Gary Ballance believes that if the pitches are slow in nature then you need to play the fifth bowler since it puts a lot of pressure on the frontline bowlers.
"We saw in Trent Bridge that the seamers bowled too many overs, both for us and India. And I can tell you that we would have struggled on that pitch with one less frontline bowler. It does put pressure on the batsmen, but then scoring runs is our job and there is always going to be pressure to do that anyway."
- Should Kohli replace Dhoni as India's Test captain?
When asked pertinently of Ashwin's non-selection in that first Test, Ballance added, "Trent Bridge is quite a seamer-friendly wicket and not many wickets are taken by spinners. We had a feeling that he might play, but we had a lot of right handed batsmen in our line-up too so Jadeja could bowl to them. So we weren't really surprised then."