Skipper Shubman insists young team aren’t dwelling on past results and will play fearlessly against England in five-Test series, starting in Leeds today
Captain Shubman Gill during India’s practice session in Leeds yesterday. Pics/Getty Images
Historically, the pitch at the Headingley ground has been synonymous with swing bowling, often bringing nightmares to batsmen. Located in northern England, the weather here is much cooler and wetter than in London or Southampton. On a cloudy day, the ball can swing like a banana, and within a session or two, the batting team can lose the plot.
Thus, much of the focus ahead of the first Test between India and England, which begins on Friday, has been on the nature of the pitch and the weather forecast over the next five days. It has been a much drier start to the British summer this time, and sunny weather has been predicted over the weekend, which should be a come as a huge respite for the Indian team.
Skipper Ben Stokes bats at the Leeds nets yesterday
A confident India captain Shubman Gill, talking to the media, said that the drier summer and higher temperatures would ensure exciting cricket on a sporting pitch. “It is unusually dry here this June, and though the pitch has a bit of grass, the surface looks firm, and that should be a big positive for us, as any touring team would like to get off to a positive start in a long series. The first Test is always crucial, and sets the trend for the rest of the series. So, we are looking to make a positive start, whatever the conditions,” said Gill.
Despite the challenging conditions, India have done well to win two of the seven Tests they have played here and drawn one in 1979. Their wins came in 1986 and 2002. Although they have lost four times here, three of those losses occurred in the pre-1971 era, when India were considered novices against pace and swing.
‘We’ll play aggressively’
However, what would rankle the Indian team management is the heavy defeat suffered here last time in 2021, under Virat Kohli. But then, India bounced back to draw that five-match series 2-2. Gill, however, was not too perturbed with India’s poor record at Headingley in particular and in England overall. “Most of the players have not played in England and thus do not carry the baggage of the past. We are not looking back as we want to be positive and play aggressive cricket. So, it’s going to be an exciting series,” he said.
It is also unusual for a five-match Test series in England to commence at Headingley; usually, it begins in the south, in Southampton or Birmingham. Though the schedule was announced at the end of the 2023 season, many experts suspect that the England management wanted to put India under the pump right at the start of the series by giving them a tough Headingley Test. Of course, such a theory can boomerang, too, as we have seen in the past. India have shown enough ingenuity to win two of their last three Tests here. With bowler par excellence Jasprit Bumrah, and supported by Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh and Prasidh Krishna, India can never be underestimated.
Stokes happy with pitch
Inevitably, it was hardly surprising that England captain Ben Stokes was happy with the firm pitch at the venue. “The pitch is firm despite the grass on it. However, Headingley pitches have always been sporting, on which batsmen can play with confidence, while the bowlers always have something in it for them,” Stokes said on match eve.
With their modern brand of aggressive cricket, nicknamed Bazball, the England batsmen would prefer a truer pitch on which they can play their strokes freely. With such a surface on offer, there could be a lot of fluent batting for the spectators to enjoy and enough help for the bowlers to plot a win for their respective teams.
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