India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today said the team is waiting for middle order mainstay VVS Laxman's fitness report before deciding who will bat at number three in the first Test against South Africa starting here tomorrow.
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today said the team is waiting for middle order mainstay VVS Laxman's fitness report before deciding who will bat at number three in the first Test against South Africa starting here tomorrow.
"We have 15 or 16 players. There's some uncertainty over Laxman who was in the nets today. He will come back and share with physio how he feels. Other than that all others are fit," Dhoni told reporters during the match-eve media conference at the new VCA Stadium in Jamtha.
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Dhoni made it clear that he would stick to his batting slot and not promote himself up the order. "We are waiting on Laxman. I will stick to my batting number. We will see how it goes and what the situation exactly is," he said.
Laxman is under the cloud because of a finger injury he sustained during India's recent tour of Bangladesh and Rohit Sharma has been drafted in as cover. Even if Laxman plays tomorrow, Dhoni said he would not field in the slip.
"We will keep playing the playing 11 a secret. But there are less chances of Laxman if he plays standing in the slips," Dhoni said. India would miss Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh and S Sreesanth through injuries but Dhoni hoped the youngsters would step up and show their mettle.
"Injuries are beyond our control, especially sports related injuries. We will miss Rahul but somebody has to step up and do the work for the team. I'm expecting some of the youngsters will get an opportunity to prove them-selves and make runs for the side," Dhoni said.
Dwelling on the track, Dhoni expected it to aid the spinners as well as offer reverse swing which, he said, was crucial for the fast bowlers once the new ball stops swinging the traditional way.
"It looks like a flat track that will take turn. We will see spinners coming into action as the game progresses. The wicket is quite dry and I am expecting fast bowlers to get reverse swing," he said.
"It's a low bounce wicket and does not have the kind of bounce you see in South Africa, Australia or England. Reverse swing will be crucial. If a batsman plays a bad shot you can get him out caught at mid-wicket or bowled," he said.
"For fast bowlers it will be important if they get reverse swing going as in most of the tracks in India you don't see much swing happening apart from the new ball. It's about good line and length, bowling good deliveries and maintaining pressure," the Ranchi-born captain said.
Because of the low and slow nature of the wicket, leaving out the bouncers and playing the pull shot could be difficult, he felt.
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