India to play three spinners with Axar likely in the mix

Hyderabad: With spin slated to play a key role in the opening Test against against England, it’s a given that India, just like their opponents, would play three spinners. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja are automatic choices, barring injuries, and the toss up for the third one was between Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav.

India skipper Rohit Sharma, during the pre-match press conference on Wednesday, all but alluded that Axar would be the third pick, largely due to his batting abilities.  “If the wicket has bounce or if it doesn't have bounce, he (Kuldeep) still is a factor in those types of conditions because he's got superb variations. Obviously, he is a very mature bowler now from what he was a few years back,” said Rohit.

“He's not played a lot of Test cricket in India because of Ashwin and Jadeja. We've seen it in the past as well. With our middle-order (batting), in the past, a lot of us (batters) got an opportunity pretty late. But that's the reality of it, you can't hide away from it. But yes, he's a very tempting option.

“Axar, you know, with his all-round ability, gives us that batting depth. The consistency that he's shown, playing in these conditions in Test cricket, also is an important factor for us. But it was a headache to decide who it is going to be for us. But I am not going to say who it is,” added Rohit.

Patidar in 

India have also got Madhya Pradesh middle-order batter Rajat Patidar as a back-up for Virat Kohli who has opted out of the first two Tests due to personal reasons. Patidar linked up with the squad on Tuesday. When asked if they ever considered going back to seniors like Cheteshwar Pujara or Ajinkya Rahane given how big this series is, Rohit felt the focus is on grooming the next generation. 

"Look, actually, we did think about it (going back to a senior player). But all these younger players, when are they going to get their opportunity? That's something we thought, I thought as well. Leaving out an experienced player or not considering them is very hard. The amount of runs they've scored, the kind of experience they've had, the amount of games they have won for us, you know, it's very hard to ignore all of that,” Rohit said.

“But, you know, you sometimes have to bring certain players into your set-up as well. You have to give them favourable conditions as you don't want to expose them on foreign doors, where they've not played before. So, I think it's important that we try and get some of these youngsters an opportunity.”

India have been invincible at home since the start of the 2013 season, losing just three Test matches in 44 asking and having sealed 16 straight series victory. When asked if this Indian team is indeed unbeatable at home, Rohit said the team never thinks like that and are matured enough to know that every Test is a different challenge altogether.

"I don't think we are unbeatable. We don’t want to think like that. But whatever past records that we have over the last decade or so, do not guarantee that we will come out on top in this series. We have to play well to win this series.”