India v Australia, 2nd Test, Bangalore — Preview
In an ideal world, if India was trying to navigate a path back into a home series, the Chinnaswamy Stadium would not be the first choice of venue for the team. Unlike Delhi, Mohali, Kolkata, Chennai or Kanpur, which have all been fortresses over the past quarter-century, Bangalore is one city that seems to bring the best out of visiting sides. Since this venue staged its first Test in November 1974, India’s win-loss record is 6-6.
Australia has won two of its five matches here, in 1998 (a dead rubber) and 2004, though a Sachin Tendulkar double-century and an all-round bowling effort inspired a seven-wicket Indian success in 2010. Of the 22 that played that game, only M Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara – who was making his debut – will be on the field for the second Test starting on Saturday (March 4), illustrating the futility of trying to glean too much from historical scorecards.
In the wake of the 333-run loss in Pune, the message from the Indian dressing room has been of ‘one bad game’ and how there wouldn’t be any panic-induced changes to the XI. When he addressed the media two days before the Test, Anil Kumble, the coach, categorically ruled out the possibility of replacing Ajinkya Rahane at No.5. What remained to be seen was whether India picked the extra batsman, Karun Nair, and left out the fifth bowling option – Jayant Yadav.
At his pre-match media briefing, Virat Kohli was non-committal on the combination, saying that the team management would take a call in the evening. The one likely change was Bhuvneshwar Kumar coming in for Ishant Sharma, who bowled just 14 overs in Pune. The pitch, which was watered again on Friday morning, still had a smattering of grass on it, and memories were presumably still fresh of the damage Bhuvneshwar did to New Zealand at Eden Gardens when there was a little rain around.
The weather is unlikely to be a major factor over the weekend, but the players will certainly enjoy the more temperate conditions after the dry-oven heat of Pune. With the outfield so lush, reverse swing was unlikely to be central to proceedings, and the onus will once again be on the slow bowlers to force the issue on a less helpful surface than the one they encountered in Pune.
After its dream start to the series, Australia has resisted the urge to tinker, though doubts persist about Mitchell Marsh’s suitability for the No.6 slot. Having not been called on in Pune, his bowling should come into the equation here. The other Mitchell – Starc – will be performing at a venue that he knows intimately from his time here his IPL franchise.
For India, however much Kohli tried to play it down, the main conundrum concerns his opposite number. Steven Smith has now scored hundreds in five consecutive Tests against India, and he averages nearly 89 against the team. That torrent will need to be stopped if India is to get back to winning ways.
Teams (likely):
India: M Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (capt), Ajinkya Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav.
Australia: David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Shaun Marsh, Steve Smith (capt), Peter Handscomb, Mitchell Marsh, Matthew Wade (wk), Mitchell Starc, Steve O’Keefe, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
