Ex-South African fast bowler Dale Steyn has supported England to triumph in the forthcoming five-Test series against India, beginning June 20 at Headingley, Leeds. The series will also herald the start of India’s campaign for the new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, but the team arrives on the tour without veterans Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin, who retired from Test cricket recently.
Shubman Gill to Lead a Young Indian Squad
There will be a new leadership arrangement, with Shubman Gill leading the team, and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant as the vice-captain. There are also 18 youngsters in the Indian team, including Sai Sudharsan, Karun Nair, and Abhimanyu Easwaran, marking a transition period for India in the red-ball cricket format.
Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of selectors, has already made it clear that pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will not appear in all five Tests. He will only play three, as the team manages his workload during the long series quite carefully.
Steyn Forecasts a Closely-Fought Series
Talking to JioHotstar, Steyn added that he is hopeful all five games will yield results and tipped England for a 3-2 win. “All games will be tight. But all will have a result. I think it will be 3-2 in favor of England. There will be a result in every Test match. There will be no run away win for either team, all five games will be very tight,” he said.
England, with Brendon McCullum’s risk-taking captaincy, have taken 15 of their last 20 Tests at home. Of these, only one match was drawn, a reflection of their big-risk ‘Bazball’ philosophy where batters have been scoring from the opening ball. But this aggressive strategy has so far not produced predictable success elsewhere in England.
India A vs India: Warm-Up Match Underway
As preparation, the Indian side is in the middle of an intra-squad warm-up game against India A at Beckenham. In their first innings, India scored 459 runs with fifties from captain Shubman Gill and KL Rahul on Day 1.
On the second day, pace ace Jasprit Bumrah couldn’t take a wicket, while Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna each took two wickets. Sarfaraz Khan stole the show with a scorching 101 off only 76 balls, hitting 15 fours and 2 sixes before retiring on a bouncer.
India A was 299/6 by stumps on Day 2, with Shardul Thakur and Ishan Kishan stranded at the crease. Sai Sudharsan and Abhimanyu Easwaran too were firm, though neither of them could go on to make big scores from their starts.