Rotating fields will also bring Jack Leach into play. Photo: BCCI/Saikat Das
It was very interesting to watch the English Bazballers. over the past couple of years, but the five-Test tour of India is their biggest challenge yet.
They are an intriguing team to watch and are getting people talking and thinking about how best to approach Test cricket. I was in Australia for a few weeks and people were talking earnestly about England's trip to India, how they would cope with Ashwin, Jadeja and co, whether they could pull off their tricks and score five runs on spinning wickets.
I think it would be a big mistake for India if the ball started to spin a lot after the first series. England will be looking to score quickly and will do so even if their innings doesn't last long.
But spinning pitches bring Jack Leach and the young spinners England have chosen into the game. Is Leach a better spinner than Jadeja? No. But if you give him a turning delivery and England bat first, he will be right in the game. Likewise, when the ball spins big, I think India's batting might be vulnerable and England will bowl them out. If the pitch is smoother, India will score thousands and will also have bowlers who can beat England.
India must also remember that almost every team that faced England's new approach suffered badly on day one. Look at New Zealand, Australia and especially Pakistan. If India comes thinking it will be the same as usual with England, they could be in for a big shock.
As far as England is concerned, I want to say that in India you cannot win by playing only one way. There is no great sports team that plays one way every time. Pep Guardiola adapts Manchester City's style and adjusts their formation so they win everything.
Think back to the 2012 tour, which I believe was England's greatest away win this century, surpassing even the 2010-11 Ashes. No other team in India has won since then and that shows how wonderful it was. England won that tour in Mumbai because the pitch was uneven and Kevin Pietersen played an aggressive Baseball style delivery. Then they won in Kolkata using a different, more draining approach and the tide began to change. In the final Test, they played back-to-the-wall cricket to force a draw and ensure they won the series. They showed that they have different ways of solving problems.
Harry Brooke is a loss but England have cover in this regard and I am absolutely confident that overall Baseball is the best way to play for this group of England players looking to score as quickly as possible. They won't be able to score 400 runs at 2.5 per over, but they can if they manage it and score five. I saw a quote from Ben Duckett about how his reverse kick is his front guard. I laughed, but more than five Tests on wicket-spin is probably the best way for this group of players to succeed. But in India there will be times when they will have to speed up and down and play smart cricket.
Ben Duckett is unlikely to refuse to take the initiative. Photo: Getty Images/Stu Forster
If I look back at the Ashes, by the end of the series England had learned to play smart. Australia will spread the field and they will take one and two. By the end of the series they were scoring faster than at the start as they desperately tried to sort out boundaries. The same will happen in India. If there are men around, they may have to take some risks to expand their field of activity. But once that is done, are they smart enough to win the singles and thus maintain their score?
My other hope is that Joe Root doesn't get carried away with playing too aggressive cricket. I want him to play exactly like he did in 2021 when he scored three huge goals in Sri Lanka and India. This is what England need from arguably the greatest player in history.
Facing world-class spin is a question England have never answered. In truth, they have only faced a truly world-class spinner once, in Nathan Lyon at Edgbaston this year. He took eight wickets, which was arguably the deciding factor in the vital Australian victory. If they had played even half wisely, knocking him down a little more with less risk, they would have gotten another 40 or 50 and won the game. Once Lyon were eliminated from the series, England dominated.
There are two more vital factors. England must take every chance their bowlers create. You can't even get a whiff of Rohit Sharma, especially since India's batting is so deep. On these slow wickets, even India's lower order can be dangerous. Another factor is Ben Stokes' fitness. He may never play Test cricket at 100 per cent fitness again, but England need him at 90 per cent fitness after surgery because his batting and captaincy are so important.
India is simply a wonderful place to tour. Cricket is very difficult on pitches that are foreign to the sorts of high-class English players who grew up on, and the spin we encounter is usually of a higher quality than what we can provide.
There has been talk that England's preparations are largely taking place outside India in Abu Dhabi and do not include any warm-up games. I'm not against this at all. The sports complex in Abu Dhabi is as good as any in the world, and yes, in an ideal world, a couple of high-quality warm-up matches could be played. But times have changed. Pakistan and West Indies played in Australia this year. It was okay, but it wasn't like what they got when the Trials started. Especially for the West Indies it was night and day. The approach England are taking worked in Pakistan and may work again on this tour.
One thing I don't like is that England seem set to leave India to return to Abu Dhabi during the break between the second and second rounds. third tests. I think it has to do with the rather outdated views that we sometimes have about touring in India. It used to be more difficult, but now the hotels are great, the food is great and you are looked after like royalty. And yes, there are golf courses here.
In terms of team culture on tour, if England's senior players can't embrace the country they're touring and pass on that amazing experience to the youngsters, I think it will may contribute to their fall.
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