England vs India 2018, Tests: 3 things India needs to do to get back into this series 

The first Specsavers test match between India and England was a classic. A nail-bitter which made everyone watching realize the true and real beauty of test match cricket. India should have won that test match but the hosts displayed a lot of grit and self-belief and ensured they went 1-0 on the back of a complete team effort.

The battle between these two fine sides moved to the iconic Lord’s stadium and there we got to witness an annihilation that took Indian fans back to their previous tours of England in 2011 and 2014. Nothing seemed to be working for India as they were outplayed and outclassed by England.

India also played a part in their performance as they got the selections wrong by picking Kuldeep Yadav on a pitch supporting fast bowlers and it backfired big time. Kuldeep Yadav is clearly not ready for test match cricket, not yet at least. And all the batsmen looked woefully out form and confidence barring Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin who showed some fight.

With time running out for India, they need to really pull up their socks and show why this team is rated so highly. On paper, this Indian team has a lot of proven potential but they have faltered when it mattered the most. The lack of intent and confidence is very evident-something the hosts took full advantage of.

Heading into the third test match at the Trent Bridge, Nottingham, a beleaguered Indian team would need to be at their best in order to come into this series and get back to winning ways. Here’s looking at some of the things they can do to get back to winning ways:

India need to shake things up as far as their selections go

It’s pretty obvious from the first two test matches that the openers position need to be relooked at. Shikhar Dhawan looks completely out of sorts against the swing and seam in English conditions. Murali Vijay has looked shoddy, out of form and comes into this test match on a pair.

KL Rahul has been the most successful among the three batsmen tried so far on this tour but he hasn’t impressed either. India needed to bat out 37 minutes in the second innings at Lord’s before Virat Kohli could come out to bat. But before that time could elapse both openers were in the hutch-just goes to show something unexpected should be done to solve this issue.

India can either go for the safer option of pushing Cheteshwar Pujara to the opener’s slot in the hope that the intent he showed in the second innings at Lord’s can carry on into this important match. Or they can shake things up by bringing in Ravindra Jadeja into the team as a surprise choice for the opener’s position.

England, for sure, wouldn’t be expecting someone like Ravindra Jadeja to open the innings, they wouldn’t have planned for that. It is probably what India need to do-shake things up. Do the unexpected in order to get their campaign back on track.

The inclusion of Ravindra Jadeja into the side will not give Kohli the extra caution of having a potential match-winner with the bowl what with him having taken 171 wickets in his 36 test match appearances. Jadeja has also scored three triple centuries in his Ranji Trophy career so far.

The conditions and the opposition at Trent Bridge, Nottingham may be completely different from the ones where he hit those triple centuries but when the chips are down and India have nothing much to lose being 0-2 down in the series, doing something as drastic may possibly work out in their favour.

The return of Jasprit Bumrah will add more variety to the bowling attack

Jasprit Bumrah

India’s bowling hasn’t been their problem on this test series against England, it’s been their woeful batting which is a huge cause for concern. But India’s bowling attack has a similar feel to it. Three fast bowlers who bowl in the speed range of 135-140 km/h in Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami, and Umesh Yadav.

To spice things up and cause more trouble for the opposition batsmen, India need to add a surprise element. The return of Jasprit Bumrah would hopefully bring them that. The speedster is easily the quickest of the fast bowlers in the Indian squad and not to forget his unique action which is hard to pick if batsmen haven’t faced him earlier.

India lacked the potency to close the innings at the Lord’s and allowed Chris Woakes and Jonny Bairstow to dominate them. A bowler known for his death bowling skills in the limited overs formats of the game, Bumrah could certainly help India in closing the innings faster.

Virat Kohli expressed his happiness in having the services of Jasprit Bumrah back after an injury lay off. Coming back from an injury break, with a fresh mind he could just be the tonic India need to get back into this series. Can Bumrah carry forward from his impressive showing in South Africa? We will have to wait and watch.

The fiery Rishabh Pant in place of a woefully out of form Dinesh Karthik

Rishabh Pant

Things were finally looking up for Dinesh Karthik. His superhuman efforts in the Nidahas Trophy finals followed by a fairly successful campaign as skipper and batsmen for the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL, 2018, meant that when Wridhiman Saha was ruled out of the test series against England, Dinesh Karthik became the first choice as wicket-keeper to face England.

Dinesh Karthik has been on the sidelines when MS Dhoni was the wicket-keeper in test matches, but this series was the perfect opportunity for him to cement his place in the test team. Sadly, nothing of that sort has happened. The wicketkeeper from Tamil Nadu has had a campaign on the lines of his state-mate Murali Vijay.

His wicket-keeping hasn’t been too flashy and he has looked too fidgety and has been found wanting in helpful conditions for the bowlers. People would remember DK in this test series only for the light-hearted banter he shared with R Ashwin in their native tongue Tamil during the first test match.

Looking to get back in the test series, India should most definitely go in with Rishabh Pant. The dynamic, fiery left-hander has been given Rahul Dravid’s approval as well. Playing for India A against England Lions, Pant impressed as a batsman and wicket-keeper.

More than infusing a fresh lease of life into this side, Rishabh Pant can considerably strengthen the middle-order for India if he gets going. So far only Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin have shown some fight in the middle order-something that has got to change if India want to get back into this series.