IND vs NZ | 2nd Test Preview: Kiwis smell history as Virat Kohli returns with plenty of problems
With the record, Team India have had on their home soil in the last many years under Virat Kohli and sometimes even without him, one could not be blamed for writing obituaries for New Zealand in the Test series between the sides when dates were announced. Notably, that assessment is not purely of domination of a side over other or to establish shortcomings of New Zealand Test players. Rather, that is an assessment of the conditions in India and their well-rounded bowling lineup that doesn’t allow foreign batting lineups to breathe easy. There have been instances where batsmen have let India down and have left them struggling for cover but bowlers have rarely been defeated on their home soil and give the side a monumental competitive advantage. New Zealand though have not been a pushover and rather they have shed the perpetual tag of being underdogs in the recent past with brilliant performances one after another on occasions that matter the most. They continued their streak in India as well by extracting a draw for the first time in more than four years in India. The last time a Test was drawn in India was when the Steve Smith-led Australia and the hosts could not enforce a result on a placid pitch in Ranchi. The script for the first Test was somewhat similar vis-à-vis pitch conditions in Kanpur with neither spinners nor pacers getting enough purchase to keep batsmen on their toes. Also, India were significantly understrength with as many as four first-choice batsmen were missing from the playing XI including the skipper Virat Kohli, but whatever can be the attributable reasons for a draw at Kanpur, on the face of it, New Zealand are just one Test win away from winning a series in India which could well be the biggest success for a New Zealand Test side. On the other hand, India would be disappointed with the lack of support for the spinners out of the Kanpur pitch and their fragile batting that did not allow them the advantage to force the issue. They messed up the batting in the first innings after winning a crucial toss but could not maximise the good fortunes with a par score of 345 runs. A new school of ideas? India haven’t liked to play a lot of draw at home and neither have they liked playing on pitches such as the one in Kanpur in the past when Ravi Shastri and Kohli were at the helm of affairs. However, Rahul Dravid was awarded the pitch curator hefty sum from his personal wallet for preparing a “sporting” pitch and could it show that Team India is seeking a different course of action with the change in the leadership group? The problem of plenty for Kohli Kohli opted for rest during the first Test and has returned to the squad and is certain to lead the side in the second Test. However, his replacement—Shreyas Iyer grabbed the opportunity with both hands by a brilliant century and fifty on Test debut. His performance has put the team management in a spot of bother as they have to choose between him and the experienced duo of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, who led the side in the first Test. Someone has to make way for Kohli and neither of them is a matter of little relevance for the side. If they drop one of Rahane or Pujara for the form of Iyer, it could start the end of their international career. However, they don’t have numbers to claim a place in the side and hence it just depends on how Dravid and Kohli see them in their scheme of things going forward. Both Dravid and Kohli have backed them strongly and it could mean that choosing either of them or Iyer to replace in the second Test would have some sort of ripple effect. They also have one more option to include Kohli but that window opens up only if Wriddhiman Saha fails the fitness Test. if he fails to recover from the stiff neck he suffered in the first Test, Srikar Bharat could come into the side as an opener which would open a middle-order slot for Kohli. However, this option too needs a sacrifice and one of Shubman Gill or Mayank Agarwal will have every right in the world to feel hard done by if they miss out on the second Test. Match details India vs New Zealand- 2nd Test Date and Time: December 03-07, 2021, 09:30 IST Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai Broadcast: Star Sports Network, Hotstar Pitch conditions After the slow and low pitch at Green Park Stadium in Kanpur, one could imagine curators producing a rank turner at the Wankhede Stadium for the second Test. Persistent rains, however, have complicated things for curators and could well complicate the Indian think tank’s plan as well while selecting the playing XI. There are spells of rain in the air of Mumbai due to the untimely monsoon and hence there is an abundance of moisture in the air for the bowlers to extract swing with the new ball. Pitches in Mumbai are also prepared with some sort of grass on the upper surface to keep the soil intact and hence if there will be moisture in the air, the new ball will do wonders for the pacers. New Zealand would not have dreamt of such conditions in India although they have been lucky enough to have such conditions on their past two tours and yet they could not force India on their home soil. As stated earlier, this New Zealand side are different from their predecessors and if weather aides their pacers, it would open up a riveting contest between two evenly-matched sides (if spinners are curtailed due to rain in the air). Team news India Apart from the batting conundrum India have to deal with after the return of Kohli in the side, they also have to deal with the composition of their bowling attack and there is no dearth of a conundrum in that department as well. Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been the indomitable force at home and they are almost irreplaceable in the Indian Test team, especially at home. However, the newest kid on the block with the ball, Axar Patel has not put a foot wrong in his four-Test long career. He has had five five-wicket hauls against his name and deserves every bit of reckoning in the playing XI. It was an easy decision for India in Kanpur to play all three of them but the weather conditions in Mumbai might force them to make a tough decision in the bowling department as well. It’s highly unlikely that either Ashwin or Jadeja will be dropped and hence Axar will have to sit out for Mohammed Siraj. Probable XI Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Wriddhiman Saha, R Ashwin, Axar Patel/Mohammad Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav New Zealand New Zealand became over-ambitious from the outset and unleashed all their spin options in Kanpur with little to very disappointing results to show. They are all but set to go back to the three-man pace attack including the enforcer Neil Wagner, whose prowess with the ball would have come in handy on a slow pitch in Kanpur. Tim Southee suffered an injury scare on the very first day of the first Test when he walked out of the ground holding his groin. However, there are no updates from the New Zealand cap about his fitness and hence his participation in the second Test should be presumed. It’s unlikely that there will be any change in the batting department after the immense success of Will Young at the top of the order although the Blackcaps would be relying on their old horses in skipper Williamson and Ross Taylor to produce runs with the bat. Probable XI Tom Latham, Will Young, Kane Williamson (C), Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, Tom Blundell (WK), Rachin Ravindra, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, Neil Wagner/William Somerville CE Fantasy XI Wriddhiman Saha (WK), Kane Williamson, Ajinkya Rahane, Tom Latham, Ravindra Jadeja, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Southee, Kyle Jamieson Captain: Virat Kohli Vice-captain: Ravichandran Ashwin
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