England’s toughest Test assignments arose on Monday when a series of availability issues followed the loss of Harry Brook at the start of the series.
Not long after it emerged that rookie Somerset off-spinner Shoaib Bashir would not travel to India with the rest of the squad due to a visa delay, their hosts revealed that star player Virat Kohli would miss the first match in Hyderabad and the second match in Visakhapatnam next week, stating ‘personal reasons’.
The absence of Kohli, a batsman with 80 international hundreds, because other matters require ‘his presence and undivided attention’ has actually taken things to another level after Brook – the England player of the year with four hundreds in twelve Test appearances and an average of 62 – was excluded at short notice due to a serious situation at home involving a loved one.
As England trained at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium for the first time since landing from a ten-day pre-tour camp in Abu Dhabi, coach Brendon McCullum failed to confirm captain Ben Stokes’ participation and suggested the wicketkeeper position was still an issue used to be. material for discussion.
Here, Mail Sport looks at the developments that have added spice to England’s quest to become only the second team since 2004 to win a series on the subcontinent:
England will begin their five-match Test series against India in Hyderabad on Thursday
They will initially be without young star Shoaib Bashir after a visa delay prevented him from traveling with the squad
Ben Stokes, meanwhile, was seen enjoying a long nets session on Monday after returning from surgery
Bashir block
England escalated matters with their Indian board counterparts and government authorities on Monday after Bashir remained grounded in the United Arab Emirates along with ECB director of cricket operations Stuart Hooper after the pre-tour training camp due to a delay in his paperwork.
The 20-year-old was born in Surrey, but his family are from Pakistan, meaning he suffered the same fate as Australian Usman Khawaja, another cricketer with Pakistani heritage, 12 months ago.
Khawaja flew behind his teammates for 36 hours, but the proximity of England’s arrival to the first ball bowled on Thursday has exacerbated this particular incident.
England coach Brendon McCullum played things down, saying diplomatically: “Things take time, don’t they? Everyone does what they can.’ Adding: ‘It’s a process we have to go through. We’re pretty sure we’re close… then we’ll make sure he sinks his teeth into this series.’
However, it is only the fact that Bashir is the fourth choice, and not an automatic choice, that has prevented a more serious rift in relations.
England expect the red tape to be unraveled on Tuesday, allowing the 17th member of their squad to follow Dan Lawrence to a city where they will play Test cricket for the first time – as such, everyone will be available for selection.
England expect Bashir to travel to India for the series on Tuesday
Stokes on course
A positive sight for England eyes on Monday saw Stokes undergoing a long net and walking free after his knee operation before Christmas.
‘He looks like a greyhound. He’s stripping. He has worked hard for it and everyone knows his ethics are phenomenal,” McCullum noted.
Yet a man who has forged a dynamic and prosperous relationship with the England captain – a win later this week would be Stokes’ 14th, leaving him one shy of the lead over Mike Atherton in 34 Tests – nevertheless issued a word of caution about his selection and said: ‘I think he’s good to go. Of course we will call as late as necessary.’
England do not expect Stokes to bowl in the series, but it would be typical of a man determined to defy expectations to do so by the time things wrap up in Dharamsala in early March.
Brendon McCullum described Stokes as ‘stripping fit’ but they don’t expect him to bowl in the series
The return of Foakes
McCullum suggested that ‘Brooky’s news has changed things a bit’ and said on Monday that England were yet to find out who would keep the wicket in Hyderabad.
Jonny Bairstow was behind the stumps for Ashes last year after the selectors turned their backs on Ben Foakes following a summer of Bazball in 2022.
In between, Ollie Pope was preferred to Foakes in a move that allowed an extra bowler to be picked in Pakistan.
However, all evidence pointed towards Foakes, who underwent extensive drills while Bairstow practiced catching slips from ten yards away.
In circumstances where every opportunity must be taken, teams need their best gloveman and for England that is undoubtedly Foakes, who is likely to finish in seventh, behind Stokes and Bairstow.
It looks like Ben Foakes was able to keep the wicket in Hyderabad on Thursday after undergoing several goalkeeping drills on Monday
Thoughts turn to Thursday
Of course, passing judgment on a field three days before a match may be foolish, but observers of the touring party noted upon initial inspection that the field was dry.
It has raised the possibility of England fielding three specialist spinners – Jack Leach, Rehan Ahmed and Tom Hartley, who could potentially fill the role he plays in limited-overs matches and take the new ball – to complement one pace bowler.
However, Joe Root’s skill with the ball – he took stunning figures of five for eight on the last Test tour here – should row them back from that extreme, earning two of Jimmy Anderson, Ollie Robinson, Gus Atkinson and Mark Wood an offer could do combinations of new ball trickery, raw tempo and reverse swing.
The English tour group has noted that the pitch in Hyderabad looks particularly dry. It has provided the opportunity to use three specialized spinners
No compromises on style
Even if India rolls the dice by preparing pitches for their super-strong spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, England will not change the commitment to entertainment they have made before completing 13 wins in 18 under their New Zealand coach.
“There will be a lot of eyeballs watching around the world and it’s a huge opportunity for us,” McCullum said.
‘During the Ashes it was two heavyweights playing different styles and I expect that will be the same in this series.
“At the end of the day, you’re just trying to get guys in a state of mind where they’re fully present in the moment, they feel 10 feet tall and bulletproof when they walk out to play.
India could load the dice to make their pitches suitable for spin duo Ravindra Jadeja (L) and Ravichandran Ashwin (R)
‘Then we highlight their skills and talents, so that we can quickly assess what they need to do at that moment.
“We have to take 20 wickets with the ball in every Test match and we have to make one more run than they do with the bat. It’s not rocket science, but it will be the nuances of the game, and when to hold it and when to twist it, which will be the fascinating part.”