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Despite getting the massive wickets of both Ben Duckett and Harry Brook during England's second innings, it is safe to say that India all-rounder Shardul Thakur underperformed big time in the Headingley Test. Firstly, 33-year-old got dismissed cheaply for one and four runs respectively in the match and secondly, he proved to be expensive on the few occasions when he was handed the ball.
Shardul had quite a poor outing against England in the first Test
In the first innings, Shardul only bowled six overs and ended up leaking 38 runs. Then in the final innings of the match, England batters again dominated against the pacer and smashed him for 51 runs in his 10-over spell. This performance was heavily criticized by former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar, who demanded the all-rounder to be dropped for the second Test and be replaced by left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav.
"I'm sorry but Shardul Thakur has to go out. I think Kuldeep Yadav has to come back. I’m sorry to say, but That is one change India will have to make," Manjrekar said on JioHotstar.
Manjrekar further stated that India should opt to go for two spinners in the upcoming games against the Three Lions and added that all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy should be kept on the sidelines as the balance in the team will get affected if he comes in.
"As for Nitish Kumar Reddy — I backed him for the first Test purely based on what he did in Australia. It’s an unpopular choice because when he comes in, the balance does get affected a bit. He won’t quite bowl like a fourth seamer, so India needs to take a hard call: even in English conditions, they must go with quality bowlers. If that means playing two spinners, so be it," Manjrekar stated.
"Pick your best bowlers, irrespective of the conditions. You don’t have the luxury of someone like Mohammed Shami available, or the full-strength pace battery, so I’d go one seamer short and bring Kuldeep Yadav into the XI," he added.
It will be interesting to see what changes will Gautam Gambhir & Co. make to India's playing XI for the second Test of the five-match series against England which is set to commence from July 2 at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
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