India V England 2nd Test At Trent Bridge: Fitness, Form Could Lead To Changes In Indian 11

The big question facing the Indian team before the start of the second Test match is about the line-up that they will go into the game with. Zaheer Khan’s injury and the fitness issues related to Gautam Gambhir and Sachin Tendulkar and form issues surrounding Harbhajan Singh would have given rise to the questions around the playing eleven.

Zaheer’s hamstring strain is a prickly issue and a hot topic of discussion. Former cricketers and experts have panned the Indian team for allowing him to take part despite being particularly undercooked. More importantly, Indian captain will not want to get into a similar situation where the Indians are down to three bowlers very early in the game, especially given that they are now 0-1 down. To win matches, the team will need their full quota of bowlers and firing on all cylinders and that certainly did not happen in the opening encounter.

Even captain MS Dhoni hinted at not picking Zaheer if he was only fully fit, which leaves the door open for either S Sreesanth or Munaf Patel to come into the side. Sreesanth is a firebrand at the best of times and Dhoni has had issues controlling him in the past but his ability to swing at good pace will be a handful. Munaf Patel is a steady bowler and can hold one end up; whether he can pick up wickets as regularly as the team wants is a question-mark.

Harbhajan Singh’s form has been of grave concern. The Lord’s track may have been a difficult one to bowl spin on, but figures of 1/218 from a leading spinner can hardly hold water. His recent wicket-taking ability has fallen away drastically as well and murmurs of his exclusion have become louder over the months.

India’s problem is his replacement. There is only one spinner in the Indian squad, Amit Mishra, and he did not have a great warm-up game either. He was taken for runs, although, he can turn the ball well and possesses a googly that has got the better of batsmen around.

Speaking of Tendulkar, one hopes that he would have recovered from his flu but it remains to be seen whether he will be match-fit. Same goes with Gautam Gambhir, who had a bruised elbow and would probably have to miss a training session or two to get back to full fitness. For a player without too many runs in the first Test, the lack of net sessions could hardly be good news.

Yuvraj Singh and wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha are the only other batsmen in the squad.