The first test match between England and India kicked off at Trent Bridge, Nottingham today. The Indian team made a few changes to their playing XI, since the ICC World Test Championship final. KL Rahul replaced injured Shubman Gill while Siraj came in for Ishant Sharma.
But what was surprising to many cricket pundits and fans was the omission of India’s premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.
1st Test. India XI: R Sharma, KL Rahul, C Pujara, V Kohli, A Rahane, R Pant, R Jadeja, S Thakur, J Bumrah, M Shami, M Siraj https://t.co/TrX6JMiei2 #ENGvIND
— BCCI (@BCCI) August 4, 2021
India decided to play an extra seamer, Shardul Thakur instead of Ashwin. Former India cricketer, VVS Laxman expressed his opinion on leaving out Ravichandran Ashwin from the playing XI. Speaking to Espncricinfo, Laxman said:
“I always feel that Ravichandran Ashwin is a very skillful bowler, and what we have seen recently is that his overseas performances are also brilliant. And he has done very well, especially when India beat Australia in Australia. The way he got rid of Steve Smith consistently shows how confident he is in performing in overseas conditions.”
Ravichandran Ashwin would have provided the much-needed balance: VVS Laxman
No Ashwin?! #ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/JC3buwzdH6
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) August 4, 2021
The former cricketer added, that he would have gone in with the same balance as the Indian team had in the ICC World Test Championship Final. In the summit clash, the Indian team played with two spinners – Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin along with three pace bowling options.
“But when I see the squad here, they have gone in with Shardul Thakur, probably as a medium pace option and who can also probably provide some kind of depth in the batting. But for me, if you are picking a bowler who is going to bat at number 8, I would always go for a bowler who could give me match-winning performances with the ball. And for me, that will be Ravichandran Ashwin. I would have actually gone with the balance the Indian team had in the World Test Championship final,” added Laxman.
Meanwhile, speaking of the game, the game is well-balanced with 86/3 in the second session of the day. England skipper Joe Root is currently in the middle batting at 25*.
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