Rohit Sharma made significant changes to the starting lineup for the second Test at the toss, replacing KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, and Kuldeep Yadav with Shubman Gill, Akash Deep, and Washington Sundar.
The second Test between India and New Zealand will begin on Thursday, October 24 at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune. The tourists won the first Test in Bengaluru last week by eight wickets, putting them ahead 1-0 in the three-match series.
Sarfaraz Khan made his return to the playing XI after Gill missed the first Test because of stiff neck. Under pressure, the Mumbai batsman celebrated his comeback with an incredible 150 in the second innings.
As India attempts to even the series, KL Rahul was forced to make room for Gill after falling cheaply in both innings.
Siraj, meanwhile, appeared uncharacteristic in the first Test match against New Zealand and the two Test matches against Bangladesh. Akash Deep, who has had an incredible start to his international career, taking eight wickets from five innings at 23.12, was chosen by India to replace him.
Following the first Test, Washington Sundar was added to the team. According to some speculations, the off-spin bowling all-rounder would replace Kuldeep in the starting lineup to compete with the abundance of left-handed hitters in the New Zealand lineup. The 25-year-old is scheduled to play his first Test match since March 2021, therefore India went in with that idea.
The Kiwis also made one alteration to their roster, replacing Matt Henry with all-rounder Mitchell Santner. In the first Test, the right-arm bowler had a great performance, taking three wickets in the second innings and five in the first. However, the 32-year-old was ruled out because of a glute niggle, according to New Zealand captain Tom Latham.
At the toss, what were the captains saying?
Latham chose to bat first after winning the toss. It was a different surface than the one in Bengaluru, he said. According to Latham, there isn’t much grass to help the pacers, and the pitch appears to be dry. According to him, the spinners will be crucial in the Test match.
“A bat will be present. The surface is a little different than last week. There isn’t much grass. We might expect some spin when we visit certain regions of the earth. This is undoubtedly a very proud occasion for the group. We rejoiced, but Pune has now swiftly taken the stage. All you have to do is adjust to this surface. attempting to use the self-assurance we gained the previous week. Due to a nagging glute, Matt Henry is unable to participate. At the toss, Latham stated, “Santner comes in.”
In the meantime, Rohit acknowledged that if he had won the toss, he would have also batted first. But in the first ten overs, he thought his bowlers would be able to take full advantage of the new ball.
“I would have also batted. The opening session didn’t go our way in a Test match like that. However, in the second innings, we batted well. We look at the positive aspects of that and consider how we may improve this situation. When you get behind in a Test match, you always want to figure out how to get back into it. We accomplished just that.
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Yes, the pitch is a bit drier. We are aware of the significance of the opening ten overs. Siraj, KL, and Kuldeep are the three alterations that are lost. “Gill, Washington, and Akash Deep enter,” Rohit said.
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