India vs England doosra test match I india vs england 2nd test lord’s match preview ind vs eng virat kohli joe root 12th august 2021 I India vs England 2nd Test Match Preview I IND vs ENG Lord’s 2nd Test

London: The Indian team, which failed to score big in the first match despite the presence of world-renowned batsmen, will take to the field determined to bat up to their laurels in the second Test against England starting at Lord’s on Thursday. Captain Virat Kohli may also seriously consider including his best spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in the playing XI for this match.

India were in a good winning position in the first Test after a rain-drawn draw, but their first innings total of 278 was not as expected. India’s three main batsmen, captain Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, failed in this innings. It should not be forgotten that apart from Rahane’s century in Melbourne, all three have not been able to play big innings for the last two years. Meanwhile, Kohli and Pujara have not been able to convert their good starts into hundreds.

Who will be Thakur’s substitute?

As far as the team composition is concerned, the lower order batting order may be changed again due to a strain in Shardul Thakur’s muscle. This Mumbai fast bowler could not even open the account in the only innings of the first Test. Considering Ravindra Jadeja’s batting skills, the Indian team management did not keep Ashwin in the playing XI of the first Test match.

Thakur’s troubles have increased during practice at Lord’s and Ashwin is likely to find a place in the playing XI. It is not yet clear whether Thakur suffered an injury during the first Test. If Thakur fails to play, Kohli may rethink his 4-1 bowling combination as sticking to one strategy is not possible given the weakness of the lower order batting.

If Kohli wants to go with four fast bowlers, then either Ishant Sharma or Umesh Yadav will be taken in place of Thakur but the decision will not be easy. Kohli had said after the first Test, ‘There is every possibility that we will go ahead with this (4-1 combination), but we always choose the team keeping the circumstances in mind.’

Why Ashwin is the better choice

But if the captain wants to see his batting strong, then it would be the right decision to keep Ashwin in the playing XI, who can prove to be dangerous on the Lord’s pitch on the fourth or fifth day as a bowler. Talking about the weather, the maximum temperature in London is 24 degrees and the average temperature is around 14 degrees.

It will be interesting to see whether England will keep grass on the pitch here as in 2018 as the Indian batting collapsed in two days and all-rounder Chris Woakes became the hero of England’s victory. If the pitch remains dry, India can keep both Ashwin and Jadeja in the team, who can trouble the England batsmen with their varied bowling.

The young England batsmen have done a disappointing performance so far. Captain Joe Root took England to a respectable score by scoring a half-century in the first innings and 21st Test century of his career in the second innings. There is every possibility of Haseeb Hameed being kept in the playing XI in place of Rory Burns. Hameed had scored a century while opening the innings in the warm-up match against India last month.

England may have to go without their fast bowler Stuart Broad as he is injured. There is a strain in the calf muscles of his right leg. If the pitch helps the spinners, Moeen Ali, who performed brilliantly in the 2014 and 2018 series, could be included in the playing XI. If the pitch is not favorable for the spinners, then fast bowler Mark Wood can get a place in the team.

Indian batsman Mayank Agarwal is fit now but KL Rahul has cemented his place in the top order with a good performance in the first match. There will also be an option to field Rahul in the middle order if Agarwal is fit. Pujara and Rahane may not be in their best form, but they can be left out for the time being only in case of injury.

The teams are as follows:

India: Virat Kohli (capt), Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mayank Agarwal, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami, Mohammad Siraj, Umesh Yadav, KL Rahul, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav.

England: Joe Root (capt), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Dom Bess, Moeen Ali, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Jack Crowley, Sam Curran, Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Dom Sibley, Of Mark Wood.

The match will start at 3.30 pm in the afternoon.