Former India head coach Anil Kumble was surprised to see India’s playing XI for the first Test against South Africa at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Friday (November 14). Kumble was really surprised by India’s decision to drop Sai Sudarshan for the ongoing Kolkata Test.
Instead, India once again placed more emphasis on all-rounders and picked Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Axar Patel together. This unusual combination now pushes Sundar into the No. 3 role at Eden Gardens, something he has not done often in Test cricket. Sai Sudarshan lost his place after continuous poor performance in Test cricket.
Anil Kumble criticizes Gautam Gambhir’s strategy for Kolkata Test; Criticized Sai Sudarshan’s mistake
India have kept Dhruv Jurel at number six as a reward for his excellent form after he scored two centuries for India A against South Africa A in the recent red-ball games. From their previous Test against the West Indies, India made two changes: Rishabh Pant and Axar Patel came in, while Nitish Kumar Reddy and Sai Sudarshan were dropped.
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Nitish Kumar Reddy had already been released to join the India A squad for the unofficial ODI series, but Sai Sudarshan’s omission was a big surprise. Meanwhile, Kumble questioned why India felt the need to play so many all-rounders when the pitch on the first day was good for batting.
The great spinner felt that three spinners were enough and warned that with four spin options, one of them would not be able to get the required overs against South Africa in Kolkata. With only two fast bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, in the lineup, Kumble admitted there will be huge pressure on him on the first day at the Eden Gardens.
Anil Kumble gets a blow as India drop Sai Sudarshan and push Washington Sundar to No. 3
“Really surprised at the lineup because I definitely expected Sai Sudarshan to play in this Test match. Who will bat at No. 3? That will be the question. Washington Sundar has been sent in to bat at No. 3, so India will bowl first. 4 spinners and 2 fast bowlers. I definitely expected to play 3 spinners and 2 fast bowlers,” Anil Kumble was quoted as saying by Sony Sports.
The commentator further added, “So, it is going to be a bit challenging. On the first day, the wicket is good. It is not that you need 4 spinners, and one of them will definitely bowl less. So, it will be interesting to see how Shubman Gill utilizes his resources on the first day. Of course, the 2 new bowlers will become more important for India on the first day.”
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Anil Kumble calls India’s XI in Kolkata Test an ‘all-rounder army’
Additionally, Kumble revealed that India’s lineup for the Test looks more like a team full of all-rounders than a traditional batting order. With Washington Sundar pushed to No. 3, the pure batsmen are limited to Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul.
Apart from Jadeja, Axar and Sundar, the former Indian captain also called Rishabh Pant, Dhruv Jurel, Jadeja, Axar Patel and Sundar as all-rounders, filling the XI with multi-role cricketers. Kumble signed off by saying, “So, this is a team full of all-rounders, and perhaps this is the kind of team India are going with in all 3 formats of the game.”
