In 2021, when India played England in Bristol - the side’s first red-ball game in seven years - the overarching question was about the future of Tests in the women’s game. When India’s next stop in the longest form of the game came a few months later against Australia in Carrara- a pink ball affair this time - the footnote remained unchanged.
So when there is an 802-day gap for India’s next Test match, one can’t fault think tanks for struggling to strike a balance between backing proven warhorses and young blood waiting to show what they can do, for a four-day Test match.
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England has had better luck with fixtures given that Tests are a part of the multi-format Ashes series. The side features players comfortable with red ball cricket - from skipper Heather Knight to Tammy Beaumont, who comes into this Test after a scintillating 208 in the Trent Bridge Test earlier this year.
This or that
England’s trump card though is undoubtedly Sophie Ecclestone who romps into this game as an automatic starter with seven wickets in three games in the recently concluded T20I series. When India and England sparred in the Bristol Test, Ecclestone took eight wickets to leave India grasping for air after which Sneh Rana and Taniya Bhatia pulled off a marvellous rescue act.
England’s Nat Sciver Brunt, Heather Knight and Sophie Ecclestone during the practice session ahead of India Vs England Test match. | Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI/The Hindu
“Sophie recently dislocated her shoulder and that she has done the work and come back and continued to find success is a testament to the cricketer she is,” Beaumont said about her teammate.
Knight has a couple of toss-ups on her hands. Emma Lamb’s injury means Beaumont will get a new opening partner with Maia Bouchier looking primed to take up that spot given the hard yards she put in at the nets. Sophia Dunkley, who has been woefully out of form for far longer than she would like, might not be out of the picture given the added option of leg spin she provides.
Lauren Filer’s fastish rippers make her a good candidate to make the England XI and might help her edge out namesake Lauren Bell.
“Conditions certainly impact the playing XI. You’re backing your best cricketers obviously, but heat and humidity means conversations of an extra batter and extra bowler come up and we’re leaning towards an extra bowler,” Knight said a day ahead of the game.
Fresh faces
Only Harmanpreet and Smriti Mandhana remain from the 2014 side that faced South Africa. India’s selection choices may look simple or challenging depending on what the coach and captain want to prioritise in this game.
Shafali Verma, Mandhana (who scored her maiden Test ton vs Australia), Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet, and Yastika Bhatia look set to form the top five, having put in performances that show their solidity in these positions.
Given that any sign of grass on the wicket at the D.Y.Patil Stadium was meticulously shaved off over the day, India could look for a two-seamer-three-spinner combination, falling back on the tried and tested trio of Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana and Rajeshwari Gayakwad. Renuka Thakur and Pooja Vastrakar can saddle pace duties.
Harmanpreet Kaur and Coach Amol Muzumdar during the practice session ahead of India Vs England Test match. | Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI/The Hindu
“In 2014, I was the only offspinner in the side, and my first wicket was off a full toss. Now we have enough spinners that I won’t be needed with the ball,” Harmanpreet said before the game. But her off-spin and ability to find breakthroughs when momentum dries up will mean she might need to stay on the ball in more ways than one.
England is set to play its 100th Test match, which will make it the first nation to get to the mark. With a more assured and seasoned outfit, Knight and Co. might have a slight edge over the home team, but it will come down to who reads the conditions the best and adapts a largely white-ball playing philosophy to the longest format of the game.
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