3 Indian Players for whom the second Test is vitally important

India won the first Test against the West Indies by a massive margin of an innings and 272 runs. This was India’s biggest Test win against West Indies.

Before the second Test starts at Hyderabad on Friday, let us take a look at 3 Indian players for whom the second Test is vitally important.

KL Rahul

KLRahul’s career started with a bang when he scored a century in only his second Test at Sydney. He followed that up with a century against Sri Lanka at Colombo in his fourth Test. There was a time in 2017 when Rahul scored 7 consecutive 50s in 7 Test innings against Australia and Sri Lanka. But his form dipped since the South Africa tour early this year.

Rahul played in two Test matches in South Africa and had scores of 10, 4, 0 & 16. Against Afghanistan at home, Rahul scored a 50 in the only innings he played.

The England Test series was a nightmare for Rahul until the last day of the tour. Before that, in 9 innings Rahul had scores of 4, 13, 8, 10, 23,36,19, 0 & 37. Then came the last innings of the England series. Rahul’s previous records suggest that he has always scored heavily in a dead rubber when there was no pressure to perform.

When Rahul and India had nothing to lose on the fourth innings of the Oval Test, Rahul decided to go on the attack mode. He went all guns blazing and scored a remarkable 149 on a difficult fourth innings pitch. With a little bit of luck, Rahul could have saved that Test for India. But that innings of 149 saved Rahul’s Test career. He was about to go the Dhawan and Vijay way when his fortunes took a u-turn. The team management must be complimented for giving a long rope to Rahul in England.

Unfortunately, Rahul got out in the very first over in the Rajkot Test. That makes the second Test at Hyderabad vitally important for K.L. Rahul. There is no doubt that he would be in the Indian squad for the tour of Australia. But Rahul should make use of his batting stint in the Hyderabad Test to come back to form. Even a score of 50 against the mediocre West Indies bowling line-up should do him a world of good in terms of confidence ahead of the Australian tour.

Rahul’s overall Test average is 38. In Australia, South Africa, and England, Rahul has scored 459 runs in 18 innings at an average of 25. Apart from his two centuries in Sydney and London, Rahul was inconsistent in the remaining 16 innings in which he has the highest score of 37, that too in the first innings of the Oval Test.

The Australian tour would be a decisive tour as far as Rahul’s career is concerned. There are other new players like Mayank Agarwal breathing down his neck.

So as to go in the right frame of mind to Australia, Rahul should make use of the opportunity in the second Test at Hyderabad. Rahul should be cautious in the initial stages of his innings when he is vulnerable to in-swingers getting bowled or trapped in front. Once Rahul sees off the new ball, he is capable of a big innings as he showed in the Oval Test.

Ajinkya Rahane

Ajinkya Rahane - At crossroads

Rahane had a mediocre tour of England where he scored 257 runs in 10 innings. Being the vice-captain of the team, Rahane was able to hold on to his place in spite of the repeated failures.

The beauty about Rahane is that in India’s lonely Test wins in South Africa and England, Rahane played a huge role. Rohit Sharma was preferred for the first two Test matches in South Africa which India duly lost. Rahane was brought into the team for the third Test at Johannesburg.

South Africa had a slender lead of 7 in the first innings and the match effectively came down to the second innings. Rahane walked in with India on 57 for 3 and left at the score of 203 for 7. Rahane’s individual contribution was 48. India won that match by 63 runs.

In the England series, in the third Test at Nottingham, India were 82 for 3 when Rahane joined Kohli. Kohli and Rahane added 159 runs for the fourth wicket before Rahane got out for 81. In the end, India won that match by 203 runs. In hindsight, that partnership between Rahane and Kohli saved India from a humiliating 5-0 whitewash.

But where exactly Rahane failed was in the second innings of the fourth Test when India were chasing down 245 for a win to keep the series alive. After Kohli got out following a century partnership with Rahane, the latter could have guided the team to a victory with support from Rishabh Pant and Ashwin. But Rahane got out immediately after reaching his 50 allowing England to take control over the series.

In the first Test against the West Indies at Rajkot, Rahane scored an unconvincing 41 off 92 balls. He was not at all fluent in his innings though the team was in a commanding position to press the accelerator. Now, for Rahane, it boils down to the second Test at Hyderabad.

Like Rahul, Rahane needs big innings at Hyderabad before the tour of Australia to get back his confidence. Of late, Rahane has been struggling in home conditions and was not able to rotate strike frequently. Here is a very good opportunity for Rahane to set right the records against a mediocre bowling attack in home conditions.

Rahane is no more in the scheme of things for India in white ball cricket. In Test matches, there are others like Hanuma Vihari, Rohit Sharma and Karun Nair waiting in the wings. Hence, the second Test against the West Indies assumes paramount importance to Ajinkya Rahane going forward in his career.

Umesh Yadav

Umesh Yadav gets limited opportunity to present his case

Umesh Yadav has figured in only 5 Test matches for India in the past one year. He has taken 13 wickets in those 5 matches. In home conditions, where India play just 2 seamers, Umesh Yadav loses out. In away series where the conditions suit Umesh Yadav, he becomes the 5th choice bowler after Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Mohammad Shami.

As a result, Umesh Yadav gets very little opportunity and to his credit, he has done reasonably well in the limited outings he has got in the past.

In the only Test he played at Edgbaston, Umesh Yadav got 3 wickets. In the second innings, Kohli got it wrong by not introducing Umesh Yadav on the third morning when the conditions were conducive for fast bowling. When Umesh was finally brought into the attack after lunch, he took 2 wickets in 7 overs. But by that time, the game was beyond India’s reach.

On the basis of his performances in the first Test, Umesh should have been an automatic choice for the second Test at Lord’s. But the team management made a blunder in deciding to go with an extra spinner in Kuldeep Yadav. In one single bad move, the team management finished off the England tour for both the Yadavs- Umesh and Kuldeep.

In the Rajkot Test, Umesh Yadav managed just one wicket in 14 overs of bowling. The second Test would be one last chance for Umesh to be in the playing XI for a while. He should strike hard at Hyderabad to impress upon the selectors. He should strike early as he won’t be expected to bowl more than 6 overs in his first spell with the three spinners to follow. In Umesh Yadav’s favour, the overhead conditions in Hyderabad for the first two days of the Test match are expected to be partly cloudy.

Another factor in Umesh’s favour is that with this West Indies batting lineup, he should definitely get to bowl in both the innings. The same thing cannot be said of Rahane and Rahul when they come out to bat. They may get only one chance at the batting crease to prove themselves.

Like Rahul and Rahane, Umesh will definitely be on the plane to Australia. But a handful of wickets in the second Test at Hyderabad should keep him in the good books of the selectors. On the Australian tour, India will certainly come across pitches where the services of four fast bowlers are warranted. Umesh Yadav will get an opening in such a scenario. But for that to happen, Umesh should first make his presence felt in the second Test at Hyderabad.