cricinfo England Vs India 2nd Test Comments

India wait on Zaheer Khan injury for Trent Bridge Test

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Second Test: England v India

• Venue: Trent Bridge
• Date: 29 July - 2 August
• Start time: 1100 BST
• Coverage: Live ball-by-ball Test Match Special commentary on BBC 5 live sports extra, BBC Radio 4 Long Wave & BBC Sport website; live video scorecard on Red Button (not Freeview); live text commentary on BBC Sport website & mobile; watch live on Sky Sports (subscription required); highlights each evening on Channel 5

Zaheer's injury left Kumar (right) bearing the brunt of the bowling at Lord's

India captain Mahendra Dhoni faces some selection issues before Friday's second Test against England at Trent Bridge.

Seamer Zaheer Khan, who took nine wickets in the 2007 Test on that ground, broke down with a hamstring problem on the first day of the Lord's Test, which England won by 196 runs.
"We have three days, but I'm not 100% sure if we will play him. We don't want to risk anyone who is 90%," Dhoni said.
"It was tough. Most of the things that could have gone wrong, went wrong."

Analysis

Continue reading the main story

Rahul Tandon,
BBC Radio 5 live in Kolkata

India have been outclassed by England, and go into the second Test under massive pressure from their huge media following

Zaheer batted with a runner at Lord's, failing to score a run, and did not take the field in England's second innings.
Pacemen Munaf Patel and Sreesanth stand by to replace the left-armer at Nottingham.
In addition to Zaheer's injury, star batsman Sachin Tendulkar spent a long time off the field because of a viral infection and opener Gautam Gambhir was struck by a fierce blow on the elbow while fielding at short leg - neither were able to bat in their usual position on Monday as India's makeshift batting order eventually folded.
"Sachin was much better [on Monday] but I wouldn't say he was 100%," Dhoni added.
"In both innings he really felt it, especially after the first innings when he felt quite weak."
With England now pressing to win the four-Test series by two games, which would propel them to the top of the Test rankings in India's place, Dhoni's tactics - and the make-up of his team - have already been questioned.

INDIA - SLOW STARTERS?

Continue reading the main story Last nine Test series:

• Lost the first Test: v England (Jul 2011), South Africa (Dec 2010 & Feb 2010), Sri Lanka (July 2010)
• Drew the first Test: v New Zealand (Nov 2010), Sri Lanka (Nov 2009)
• Won the first Test: v West Indies (Jun 2011), Australia (Oct 2010), Bangladesh (Jan 2010)

Speaking on the Tuffers and Vaughan Cricket Show, BBC Radio 5 live's India reporter Rahul Tandon explained: "India have been outclassed by England in this Test, and go into the second under massive pressure from their huge media following.
"Some TV stations are already running polls over who's to blame - was it Dhoni's captaincy, the batsmen or the bowlers?
"Dhoni's talked about the injuries, but India may have come into this match really under-prepared. They've got an absolutely dreadful record in first Tests.
"India play so much Twenty20 with the Indian Premier League (IPL), and the likes of Tendulkar, Gambhir and Zaheer who struggled in this Test, haven't played any cricket for the last couple of months as they missed the West Indies series.

"Before that, they played in the IPL, and before that the World Cup, so they've been short of four or five-day cricket.
"They don't have much time before the next Test, and if Zaheer's not fit, they're going to struggle again.
"The opening partnership is still a concern as Virender Sehwag's not going to be fit until the third Test, and even the youngsters aren't great fielders - I think it's symptomatic of the team that Abhinav Mukund, who's only 21, is a pretty dreadful fielder.
"So there's a realisation here in India that they're in serious danger of losing their status as the number one Test team."
Several senior players missed the tour of the West Indies, while Dhoni himself sat out the one-day leg - and there could be pressure on India to make changes for Trent Bridge.

Tandon added: "The players who went to the West Indies have been the ones who have performed better - Praveen Kumar bowled very well at Lord's, and Ishant Sharma bowled a fantastic spell in the second innings.
"Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, who played in the West Indies, looked more attuned to Test cricket too.
"The trouble is, they play so much cricket, it looks like some of them are picking and choosing what tours they want to play on.
"There's talk of Yuvraj Singh coming in for Harbhajan Singh, but playing seven batsmen would be a negative move.
"Munaf Patel had a good World Cup and could bowl well in English conditions, seaming it away, but if they're brave - which they need to be - the selectors should take a chance on Sreesanth.
"He's a match-winning bowler who can get you five or six wickets, but he's also the sort of bowler who can completely lose the plot and be thrashed around the ground."