Watch: Kumble bowls in nets as India prepare for the second practice match
Jul 14, 2016 at 12:37 PM
India will be keen to plug the holes and execute the finishing touches to their preparation for the four-Test series when they face West Indies Cricket Board President’s XI in the final warm-up game starting from Thursday.
Head coach Anil Kumble, who has a magnificent record in the West Indies, was seen bowling at the nets to opener KL Rahul.
The former Indian spinner, who looks like being involved with the boys in their training and practice sessions, was seen working hard with the players as he even bowled a few balls to India’s Test skipper Virat Kohli.
Look who bowled in the nets today. Head Coach @anilkumble1074 and with him @cheteshwar1 #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/zfMq8qCDZG
— BCCI (@BCCI) July 13, 2016
The three-day match will most likely decide the final playing eleven for India and both the batsmen and bowlers will hope to make their performance count and earn a spot when Kumble and Kohli sit down to select the team for the first Test at Antigua starting July 21.
India were far from impressive in their last two-day warm-up game as their pace department struggled with their inconsistent show and it will be the last chance for Kumble’s boys to make an impression. However, spinner Amit Mishra was the peak of the bowlers taking four wickets.
The Indian seamers, including Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami, who is returning to competitive cricket after a long injury lay-off, started well but lost the plot later as they messed up with their line and length. They could not push the batsmen to play their deliveries and bowled too wide outside the off stump, something which the pacers will have to rectify in the three-day warm-up game at Warner Park.
Ishant Sharma, who also has had a long lay-off, and Umesh Yadav will also look to hit the deck hard as both of them are believed to be key members of Kohli’s gameplans.
It will be interesting to see if Mumbai pacer Shardul Thakur gets a chance to roll his arms over in this game. While the seamers were inconsistent, leg-spinner Amit Mishra was impressive and made life difficult for the West Indies Presidents’ XI batsmen and was on a hat-trick after he dismissed Rajendra Chandrika and Jermaine Blackwood in successive balls.
This series would be Kumble’s first assignment as the chief coach of the team and Virat Kohli’s first tour to the Caribbean as Test captain.
The series comprises four Tests starting with the opening match at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua from July 21 to 25, followed by 2nd Test at Kingston from July 30 to Aug 3, 3rd Test at Gros Islet from Aug 9 to 13 and fourth Test at Trinidad on Aug 18 to 22.
India and West Indies had their first Tests clash in 1948. They have met on 90 occasions, with West Indies winning 30 to India’s 16 and the rest being drawn.