The Indian team is intensively preparing for their upcoming second Test against England which is set to begin on February 2 at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam.
After a disappointing 28-run defeat in the first Test against England, where they failed to reach the 231-run target, the Rohit Sharma-led team is now keen to bounce back in the second match to even the series at 1-1. They are currently engaged in rigorous training sessions.
According to PTI reports, the Indian batsmen have been focusing on perfecting their sweep shots during practice, a technique that proved effective for England in the first Test. The Indian batters, except for captain Rohit Sharma, scarcely employed this shot. Sharma did attempt the sweep, but was unable to score substantially.
Sweep shots headline India's practice session
As the second Test against England draws near, Indian batsmen Shubman Gill and Rajat Patidar have been notably practicing both traditional and reverse sweep shots. These two players focused primarily on this technique, while other batsmen intermittently used the shot.
Reports indicate that Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz Khan are potential candidates for their Test debut with India in the upcoming match. They were observed practicing slip catching, having been named as replacements for the team's key batsmen.
Patidar was brought in as a substitute for Virat Kohli, who withdrew from the two Tests, while Sarfaraz Khan was selected to fill KL Rahul's spot. Given the struggles of Indian batsmen against spin, introducing these domestic cricket standouts could be a strategic move for the team.
Root's special nets session
In addition, there were reports stating that England's batsman Joe Root was spotted practicing left-handed batting in the nets. This could be a strategy to counter the challenge posed by Indian spinners. Following this, he was also seen working on his reverse sweeps and sweeps.
Leach ruled out
Spinner Jack Leach has been ruled out of the second Test against India as he didn’t take part in the training session. Apparently he picked up a knee injury while fielding during the first Test against India. In his place, uncapped Shoaib Bashir might be given the debut. England spinners had a great outing in the first match and would be hoping to do the same in the next match.
India's batting coach on ‘sweep’ session
When questioned about Indian batters employing sweep and reverse sweep shots, India's batting coach Vikram Rathour responded by saying that these shots aren't instinctive for his team as they generally play in a traditional style.
Rathour encouraged the Indian batsmen to leverage their strengths, emphasizing footwork. He expressed that if the players could integrate some additional shots along with strong footwork, it would benefit the team. He elaborated on this during a conversation with reporters.
“It is not something you can try. You need to practice it. If you have more shots it is beneficial. We play in a traditional way. Our strength is going straight and using our feet. We need to do that well and if we can play some shots, that is always a good addition.”
(WITH PTI INPUTS)
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