In the second Test match of the series at Visakhapatnam, England substituted James Anderson for Mark Wood after failing to secure a wicket in the first Test in Hyderabad. Given that England is eager to alter their tactics for the third Test in Rajkot, the seasoned bowler will probably continue to hold his position despite his outstanding performance.
Interestingly, in the first two Test matches of the series, the visitors only used one seamer; but, in the third, they will probably drop a spinner in favor of an extra seamer. Currently, Shoaib Bashir, who debuted in Visakhapatnam, is probably going to leave. Rehan Ahmed, the most recent England player to deal with visa concerns, and Tom Hartley, who has been the team’s top wicket-taker thus far in the series, will both continue to play.
It shouldn’t worry you. Given our situation, the men who handled it at the airport did a really excellent job. In response to a question on Rehan’s visa problems, captain Ben Stokes was cited by ESPNcricinfo as stating, “I’m confident that will be sorted tonight or tomorrow.”
We could employ Mark Wood and gain a little more versatility if we went with two seamen: Stokes
Ben Stokes, the captain of England, is also fond of Wood’s pace, which could be advantageous given that India’s middle order for the third Test of the series is inexperienced. The all-rounder, who was born in Christchurch, pointed out that having an extra seamer in the starting lineup will provide the pacers with a break to help them with their workload and will also add diversity to the lineup.
Given Woody’s quick pace, it makes sense that if we switched back to using two seamers, Woody would get a little more rest—after all, he was the only seamer in the first test, thus controlling his workload. We could be able to employ Woody more creatively and not have to worry that he’s the sole seamer if we went with two seamers, according to Stokes.
England will assess the surface on Wednesday afternoon, February 14, before making a final decision over the starting XI. On the other hand, the modifications are essentially verified and can be declared on the same day.