India and England are about to lock horns in a five-match series as the first game of the series will get underway on Thursday, January 25 at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. As the two giant Test nations collide against each other all eyes will be once again on the pitches prepared for the series as there has been a wild uproar in the cricketing fraternity over India not producing competitive pitches in their home.
Recently, former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull weighed in his opinion on the issue and compared the pitches prepared in New Zealand with India. He stated that the criticism of Indian pitches isn’t fair at all and as long as they’re not underprepared it doesn’t bother him.
“I don’t think it is fair at all (criticism of Indian pitches). In New Zealand, there is 15-18mm of grass on every Test pitch. It would seam around for a day and a half; that is how New Zealand win at home. I’ve got no issue with how India want to play at home, as long as the pitches are up to the standards. I don’t care if it turns from Day 1 as long as the pitch is not underprepared, rough, or looks ordinary on the opening day,” Doull was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.
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Further speaking ahead, he expressed his concern about the new crop of Indian batters failing to get big scores against their names due to the abrasive surfaces.
“The only thing I would say is how do these modern Indian batters, The Shubman Gills and the (Yashasvi) Jaiswals, get Test match double hundreds? You look at the careers of the previous Indian batters and the careers of these new Indian players, and you’d feel, ‘We don’t expect them to average 55, 54, 53, like the Tendulkars, the Dravids, the Sehwags, and the Laxmans’. That’s because they are playing on surfaces that are more spin-friendly on Day 1,” says Doull.
Notably, Shubman Gill began his career in Australia where he scored 259 runs from six innings at an average of 51.80. However, his average saw a major dip when he began playing in India as the 24-year-old has 417 runs from 14 innings on home soil at an average of 32.07 taking his overall career average to 30.58. On the other hand, Yashasvi Jaiswal is yet to play his first Test in India having scored 316 runs from seven games at an average of 45.14 so far.
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I don’t think it will work over a five-Test series: Simon Doull
Doull also made prediction on the effectiveness of England’s ‘Bazball’ strategy in India, and felt that the ploy won’t work across five Tests.
“I don’t like the term. But the way they play, I enjoy. They will not change the way they play, and neither should they. It has been attractive; it has been a resurgence of Test cricket. I don’t think they will stop the way they play. Will it work? It might in a Test or two. I don’t think it will work over a five-Test series. (It’s not) good enough to beat an Indian side. I think we are in for a cracking Test series, and it will be entertaining no matter how it goes, but I don’t think they will be able to sustain it over a five-Test series,” he added.
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