Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly has urged Virat Kohli to bat first in the fourth Test match at Ageas Bowl to put pressure on England. In fact, Joe Root had taken a peculiar decision in Trent Bridge when he decided to put the visitors into bat after winning the toss.
However, Virat Kohli is yet to call the right side of the coin in the ongoing Test series. In fact, it is well said in Test matches, “You win the toss and bat first on nine out of ten occasions. On the tenth occasion, you think about fielding first but still bat first”.
Meanwhile, it is well known that a Test match is generally set up in the first innings. If India can put anything above 300 while batting first, it will put England behind the eighth ball.
Sourav Ganguly believes India can still win the series.
“Absolutely, they can win the series. Every Test has seen a result and it should be the same. This is a big opportunity for India to make a comeback and take the series. But for that, they have to put pressure on the English team. I felt that batting first in the third Test was a blessing in disguise as the Indians seemed keen to bat second in both the first two games. You have to bat first, put up runs on the board and put pressure on the English batsmen. They are not in the best form at the moment and the Indians should look to exploit that,” Sourav Ganguly said while talking to Hindustan Times.
Ganguly went on to add that Rahane needs to bat in the middle order in both Test and ODI format. Rahane had scored a fine 81 in the first innings of the Trent Bridge Test as he was able to get back into form.
Rahane should find his place in ODIs.
“I have no doubt that India needs Rahane in the middle-order in both Tests and ODIs. Being dropped after doing well in the shorter-format could have hurt his confidence. Rahane seems like someone who is a big confidence player and this is where Kohli’s role becomes important. He needs to put his arms around Rahane’s shoulder and give him that boost. In the past generation, most of the top players played both formats for India – Tests and ODIs. If after so many years, the team management still hasn’t been able to show him that confidence and faith, then that needs to be worked on immediately,” the former India captain opined.
No comparisons.
In fact, there are some similarities between the captaincy styles of Virat Kohli and Sourav Ganguly. Both were aggressive in their approach and likes to take the bull by its horns. However, Ganguly doesn’t want to make any comparisons.
“I don’t wish to make comparisons or pass such statements on whether he reminds me of my younger days, but I must say he is just fantastic. One thing that is clear with him is his will to win. He just wants to win games for the country. He is such a positive character and I think that rubs off on the others as well. The vibe is positive and that is what counts,” he smiled.
India will like to replicate their Trent Bridge performance where they checked all the right boxes. Sourav Ganguly rightly believes the visitors are still in the race.