Sanjay Bangar feels Jasprit Bumrah-starrer Team India will make two changes to their playing XI for the 5th Test against England at Dharamsala.
Speedster Jasprit Bumrah is set to return as Rohit Sharma’s Team India arrived in Dharamsala for the fifth and final encounter of the England series. With Bumrah set to spearhead India’s bowling attack at Dharamsala, veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is gearing up for his landmark appearance in the longest format. Sure-starter Ashwin will record his 100th Test appearance in the final red-ball game against Ben Stokes’ England at the picturesque location.
India’s Rohit Sharma, Kuldeep Yadav and others during a practice session (PTI)
Talking about sure-starters, former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar is expecting the hosts to rejig their starting eleven against England. Besides the expected changes to India’s XI, former all-rounder Bangar observed that the Rahul Dravid-coached side can hand out another debut cap in the five-match Test series. Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel and Akash Deep have all made their Test debuts in the ongoing England series.
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‘Jasprit Bumrah can return in place of Kuldeep Yadav’
Speaking to Star Sports in the lead-up to the 5th Test between India and England, Bangar opined that uncapped Devdutt Padikkal should replace Patidar. The former India batting coach also observed that Bumrah could replace spinner Kuldeep Yadav in the Indian XI at Dharamsala.“It will be slightly cold and there will be a little seam movement because of the altitude at which the ground is located. Because of that, there will be one condition-based change. Jasprit Bumrah can return in place of Kuldeep Yadav. So India will play with three fast bowlers – (Mohammed) Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah and Akash Deep,” Bangar said.
‘Rajat Patidar hasn’t scored runs’
Patidar has registered scores of 32, 9, 5, 0, 17, 0. Yes, the 30-year-old scored only 32 runs with a disastrous average of 10.5 in the first three Tests of his international career. India didn’t pick out-of-form Shreyas Iyer for the remaining three Tests against England. The hosts are also without KL Rahul, who was earlier ruled out of the final game of the series. Thus, Rahul’s Karnataka teammate, Padikkal, was roped in as a replacement. “Because Rajat (Patidar) hasn’t scored runs in three Test matches, you can see a new debutant there. The Indian team can give a chance to Devdutt Padikkal. So two changes according to me,” Bangar added.
