Beckenham: India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate Thursday said the team is ‘leaning towards’ playing lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah in the fourth Test in Manchester since the series is on the line but a final call will be taken close to the must-win game, starting July 23.
Speaking after India’s only training session in Beckehham after the Lord’s heartbreak, Doeschate said many factors will influence the call on Bumrah’s participation.
“We’ll make that call in Manchester. We know we’ve got him for one of the last two tests. I think it’s pretty obvious the series is on the line now in Manchester, so there will be a leaning towards playing him,” said Doeschate.
“But again, we’ve got to look at all the factors. How many days of cricket are we going to get up there? What do we feel is our best chance of winning that game? And then how that fits in together with the Oval and looking at the last two games holistically as part of the series.”
India will be reaching Manchester July 19.
Not everyone has to bowl nine over spells
England captain Ben Stokes took workload management out of the window and guided his team to a famous win at the iconic venue.
Stokes had bowled spells of 9.2 overs and 10 overs to maintain pressure from his end while bowlers from other end delivered in shorter bursts.
Asked if workload management is an overrated term in international cricket, the former Netherlands all-rounder said, “That was super impressive for Ben to come out on their last day and bowl the amount of overs he did with the intensity he did, and obviously bats and fields as well.”
“We’re not here to compare our bowlers to individuals from other teams. We have our own strengths. We know what Jasprit does in spells, in shorter spells, which he prefers bowling in.
“And when the time’s right, and what I alluded about Siraj, some bowlers are like that. You get the best out of them in their seventh, eighth and ninth over, but not everyone has to be the same as that. And we feel that in consultation with Jasprit, how we use him is the best way for the team.”
Important to manage stoic Siraj’s spell
Doeschate said it is equally important to manage the workload of someone like Mohammed Siraj who is always ready bowl those extra overs, like Stokes did on day five at Lord’s.
“We take for granted how lucky we are to have someone like that. I know he doesn’t always have the returns that you expect from a fast bowler, but in terms of heart, he’s like a lion and what he brings to this bowling attack, whenever he does have the ball in hand you always feel like something’s going to happen.
“He’s not someone who’s going to shy away from workload, so it makes it even more important for us to manage his workload and make sure that he’s at least fit to give his best.
“And again, we’ll take a call on the combination we play, particularly given the Arshdeep situation as well, we’ll make that call closer to Manchester,” said Doeschate, referring to the left-arm pacer getting injured during training.
Pant will bat in Manchester
Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant, nursing a finger injury, did not train on Thursday but made the trip to Beckenham with the squad. He is expected to regain full fitness for the Manchester game.
“He batted with quite a lot of pain in the third test and it’s only going to get easier and easier on his finger. Keeping is obviously the last part of the process to make sure that he can keep.
“We don’t want to go through that again, where we have to replace the keeper halfway through the innings. But he rested today. We’re just trying to give him the rest as long as possible and hopefully he’s good to go in Manchester in the first training session,” said Doeschate.
Morale remains good after heartbreaking loss
The assistant coach said the team remains in good spirits despite losing two Tests they were in a position to win.
“That might be counter-intuitive when you’re 2-1 down in the series. But we feel like the guys have been excellent for large parts of the series. The repetition of losing lots of wickets in a very short space of time has obviously been the key feature of the two losses.
“Probably both times in Headingley and obviously overnight and first thing in the morning at Lord’s, we feel cost us the game was losing six wickets for 40 again. But if you look at it individually, if you look at the run tally of all the batters, they’re all batting nicely.
“Even someone like Karun, we feel his rhythm is good, his tempo is good. We want more runs from the three. But the message is mainly, let’s really focus on what we’ve done well and tidy up the little things that have cost us results, essentially,” Doeschate added.
PTI
