Ahmedabad: England skipper Joe Root said Tuesday he is yet to have ‘real clarity’ on what should be his bowling combination for the day-night third Test against India starting here Wednesday. Joe Root said he will wait some more before finalising the bowling line-up. India and England are tied 1-1 in the four-Test series.
“We’re going to take our time with the limited information we have on this ground and pink ball cricket. We are going to make sure, we give ourselves as much (time) before we make a decision,” Root said on the eve of the match.
The England think tank has a selection headache both in bowling and batting departments.
In bowling they have Jofra Archer fit and available along with veteran pace spearhead James Anderson. The latter is back in fray after workload management kept him out of the second Test. Stuart Broad is also in contention for a spot.
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“It’s great to see him (Archer) back bowling again, we are excited. He is a world class performer and has got all the skills. It’s a very exciting place to be to have now a battery of fast bowlers to choose from,” Root pointed out.
Senior wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow has also returned to the squad. It remains to be seen whether England can keep the in-form Ben Foakes out or play both of them.
“We will get you the squad when we’re ready. That’s how we want to do things. We just want to make sure, we’re really ready for all options. When we’re absolutely ready we’ll give you the full squad together,” Root informed.
“I think having a real good understanding what this pitch might look like tomorrow morning and ahead of that first ball. It has gone dry as the days have gone as you’d expect it to. So just need to have real clarity on what balance of attack we want and utilise this practice tonight (Tuesday) to see how much dew will be a factor,” he added.
The skipper, however, hinted that there would be a bit more lateral movement with the pink ball which can ‘work in their favour’.
