Shardul Thakur and Prasidh Krishna had a full-of-horrors Test match in Leeds. Shardul, who returned to the side after 18 months, was expensive in his spells and could only grab a couple of wickets across both innings. And while Krishna was a tad more lethal, having taken five wickets throughout the game, he was equally expensive, if not more. He bowled at more than a run-a-ball in both innings and was naturally at the centre of the slamming post-match.
Krishna, who took six wickets in the Sydney Test earlier this year, was selected for his ability to hit the deck immaculately, which comes in very handy in SENA conditions. Standing at six feet three inches, he was a sure shot to exploit the bounce. Gautam Gambhir, India’s coach, still thinks Krishna will prove to be very useful in time.
“I think Prasidh bowled really well,” Gambhir said. “He got us crucial wickets as well. We picked him because we thought that he’s got something different. He’s got that bounce, and in the first innings, I think he used that bounce really well, [and] even in the second innings. He’ll keep getting better with experience. He’s got all the ingredients of being a very good bowler, best bowler, which he had shown in Australia in Sydney and here as well. That’s why I said that we’ll keep backing these boys.”
Shardul, too, had fairly decent experience playing in English conditions. Five of his twelve Test caps were handed to him in England. And more importantly, a fast-bowling all-rounder is a nice antidote to many problems in Test cricket. India wanted to enjoy that luxury as well. But India did not use Shardul as much as the other pacers. He bowled a total of 16 overs across innings, which Gambhir said was due to the side’s plan to give Ravindra Jadeja more chances to create impact, and not because of Shardul’s expensive bowling.
“Shardul was used a little less, but the reason was probably that [Ravindra] Jadeja bowled really well, so we thought that Jadeja will give us control. Shardul got us two important wickets. So I’m not going to sit here and say that this guy didn’t bowl well or that guy bowled well. Shardul gave us two important wickets, which got us back in the game. I think we just got to be more consistent. That is what is more important, and these boys will learn.”
In addition to the lacklustre bowling display, India’s Nos. 5 to 11 turned in a brutal return of 45 runs across both innings. In the first innings, the scorecard had three centuries and as many ducks. In the second innings, too, the last five batters were sent back for the addition of only 29 runs. Their shot selection, to say the least, was a curious mix of bold and baffling, but Gambhir didn’t pin the blame on the batters.
“First of all, I’ll tell you it’s not that they were not applying themselves,” he said. “Sometimes people fail, and that’s okay. I know it is disappointing and more importantly, I think they are more disappointed than anyone. Because they knew that we had the opportunity. If we had got up to 570, 580 in the first innings, we could have dominated from there.”
“It’s not that they’re not working hard in the nets as well. Sometimes these things happen, even the pure batters fail as well. So hopefully they got to learn and hopefully we can have better performances from our tail, and that is not the only reason why we lost the Test match, to be honest. There were other moments as well where we could have won the Test match. I’m not going to sit here and single out ‘it’s because of the tail’ or ‘the tail couldn’t contribute’ or ‘8, 9, 10, 11 couldn’t contribute’. We lose together, we win together.”
The bigger question, though, is how this team responds to this demoralising defeat. This was Shubman Gill’s first Test match as captain. His captaincy career is only just beginning, and Gambhir knows what the road ahead will ask of him, especially when it began with a defeat.
“Look, first Test match, obviously, there are nerves,” Gambhir said. “It’s a great honour, as he’s already mentioned. Not many people get that opportunity, and he was phenomenal. More importantly, I think the way he batted in the first innings. I’m sure he would have had his own nerves being the captain for the first time and then getting the hundred…”
Gambhir threw his weight behind the young captain. Gill finds himself in extraordinary conditions. Not only does he have to ensure his batting remains at the top of his game while also leading the side, but he also has to ensure the team’s transition takes place smoothly, without hurting their chances in the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.
“He has everything that it takes for him to be a successful captain, but we got to just give him time. It’s still very early days. He’s only captain for the first time. I’m sure he’s going to get better, and these are tough places to captain. So it’s like pushing someone into the deep sea, and I’m sure he’s going to come out as a proper professional.”
