England’s senior spinner has been ruled out with a bruised knee, so who should fill the vacancy in Vizag?
Vithushan Ehantharajah31-Jan-20246:14
What changes will England look to make in Visakhapatnam?
Jack Leach will miss the second Test against India in Visakhapatnam as he continues to recover from a bruised left knee. Should England replace him with another spinner? Should they use the opportunity to bring in an extra seamer? Or should they get funkier still? ESPNcricinfo assesses some of the optionsShoaib Bashir watches the proceedings during the first Test•AFP/Getty ImagesShoaib BashirThe last one to arrive (through no fault of his own) is the next cab off the rank. Bashir arrived in India on Sunday and travelled to the ground to witness England’s remarkable 28-run win from the visitors’ dressing-room. Now, having caught up on his sleep after hitting three different timezones in pursuit of his stamped visa, he is in contention to step in for his Somerset team-mate. After slotting back into the group with ease, he was challenging in the nets during England’s first training session at the ACA-VDCA ground, picking up where he left off in the Abu Dhabi training camp with healthy bounce and plenty of turn. Aligned with India’s peculiar issues against offspin over the last three years (their collective average of 33.53 against such bowling ranks fifth in the world according to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data) Bashir offers the most like-for-like solution, even allowing for his lack of first-class experience – a fact that didn’t prevent each of England’s last three debutant spinners – Will Jacks, Rehan Ahmed and Tom Hartley – from starting out with a five-wicket haul. “He’s a great kid,” Zak Crawley said on Wednesday. “He’s got a lot about him. He knows what he is trying to do with his bowling and he backs himself. I like that and feel like if he got his chance in this series he would go well.”James Anderson takes a break during training•Getty ImagesJames AndersonEven 48 hours out from the start, there have been suggestions this Vizag pitch will be more amenable to seam than the Hyderabad surface had been. And with that comes the prospect of England playing an extra quick. It is hard to look beyond Anderson for all the obvious reasons, not least an average of 29.32 in India and, more pertinently, eight wickets at 15.87 on the 2021 tour, which came with an economy rate of 1.92. On that tour, Anderson put on a clinic of unerring accuracy and reverse-swing – notably in the second innings of the victorious first Test when he ripped out Shubman Gill, Ajinkya Rahane, and Rishabh Pant. At 41, he looks as fit as ever, with a physique to rival Brad Pitt’s in Fight Club. Which is just as well, given how taxing fielding will be in 30-plus temperatures.Ollie Robinson bowls in the nets ahead of the second Test against India•AFP/Getty ImagesOllie RobinsonOn the subject of fitness, Robinson is also noticeably trimmer since last summer and is on this tour with a point to prove regarding his durability. Like Anderson, he can get the ball reverse-swinging, as he did in Pakistan at the end of 2022, and is skilful enough to find whatever movement there might be in the surface. Moreover, his height, which gives him an average release point of 2.2m, is a unique skillset among the seamers. He could end up making it into the XI if England decide to park Mark Wood for this match. The Durham quick only bowled 25 overs in the first Test and had an extra day off with the four-day finish. But if there is something to extract from this week’s surface, Robinson is more likely to find it.Dan Lawrence has a chance to feature in the second Test at Vizag•AFP/Getty ImagesDan LawrenceLawrence has yet to play a Test in the new era, earning the last of his 11 caps on the West Indies tour that preceded the Bazball revolution. But Stokes is a huge fan of his attacking verve and his ingrained desire to impose himself on bowlers. And it helps that he bowls tidy, whirlwind offspin, with a propensity to get the ball to grip off the seam. Joe Root’s excellence with the ball in Hyderabad means Lawrence could assume the supplementary spinner role while reinforcing the batting, potentially ahead of Ben Foakes. He performed admirably with the bat here three years ago, averaging 24.83 – the fourth-highest in the team – and was one of five to score fifty or more, although he only bowled one over in three matches. It was notable that he was one of the first to bat in the nets on Wednesday morning, partnering with Stokes, and was immediately turning his arm over for about an hour after taking off his pads.His selection would be a rogue, outside shout, but rooted in logic – ergo, exactly the kind of pick this management team like to make. He might even make the XI anyway, as a replacement for Rehan Ahmed. Considering Lawrence is only in the squad because Harry Brook returned home for personal reasons, it would be quite the turn of events.