Siraj is the only certainty among the four Indian pacers on this tour While India will be going with three left-arm slow bowlers — two orthodox in Ravindra Jadeja and Manav Suthar and a wrist spinner in Kuldeep Yadav.
India captain Shubman Gill dropped enough hints that Prasidh Krishna will share the new ball with seasoned Mohammed Siraj in the first Test against Sri Lanka starting Saturday, even as he admitted that the choice between the Karnataka speedster and rookie Gurnoor Brar is a “tough call”.
“Gurnoor Brar is excellent with the old ball as he can extract bounce at a good pace. But Prasidh Krishna is bowling well of late as we have seen in the warm-up match. “Jasprit Bumrah is not here but it’s an opportunity for someone to step up. It’s all about understanding the pace of the game,” Gill added. “Players are going to grow on their own.
So it’s a tough call,” Gill said on eve of the opening Test. We need to give time to them, some players require a bit of time,” the skipper said, giving his take on the matter.
“I am comfortable in my role as captain now. Our goal is to stay in contention for a berth in World Test Championship final. We need to win six or seven Tests for that.
So we want to make a beginning here,” the skipper said.
He also dismissed conjectures on an allegedly fractured communication between the team management and the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. “There is a constant communication with them. Unfortunately Sai Sudharsan did not improve as much as we liked as we can’t take risks in Tests. With one year as Test captain, Gill feels that he is growing into the role with every game and this series will be about fixing the wheels of World Test Championship juggernaut that had come off in recent months.
But we are confident of our 15 (players),” Gill said, putting up a brave front.
