Rahul returns to India squad for England Test

After regular opener KL Rahul returned to the squad, Gautam Gambhir exclusion from the lineup appears to be confirmed.

The incident took place in the 41 over, when left-arm spinner Zafar Ansari’s delivery took off and went over his shoulder.

If all that Virat said is to be true and Rahul stays injury-free for the whole season then this might be the end of Gautam Gambhir’s worldwide career which spanned over a decade. Also, I was coming off from the ODI series so the transition from ODIs to Tests did take some time. “I could have spent a lot of time doing rehab in Bengaluru with the physio and spent time in the gym but until and unless I had played a proper cricket game, I wouldn’t have known how fit I was”. He scored 76 and 106 in two innings as his team Karnataka would beat Team Rajasthan by 393 runs.

The first test India vs England test match ended in a draw, but there were lots of positives that England could take from the game.

“It doesn’t change my situation at all, what’s going on in Australia”, said Cook. He has played here before. “It was really important to play a first-class game to give myself the confidence that I was indeed fit. You need the experience and if someone is available, then it will obviously be a stronger unit”, he said.

India coach Anil Kumble made his intentions clear when he said, “You would want Rahul to be in your starting line-up”.

The second of the five-Test series starts in Visakhapatnam on Thursday. He has just got a bowling niggle really. Shami and Umesh bowled exceptionally well. The odd ball bounced in between and you had to pitch the ball in the right areas as spinners to get purchase from day 3 onwards. When we are playing to save the match, the pressure is more.

“In a way the team situation freed me up a bit when we were pushing on and it came back a bit better, but it is nice to score runs when maybe you’re not quite at your best”.

Virat Kohli says team adapted well and learnt new skills. Catching is one area that the team prides itself.

“We need to catch well”.

“It was a good wicket for batting”.

The veteran leg spinner also asserted that the team would focus on to improve their catching, which let them down in the drawn first Test in Rajkot.

Mishra said that the pitch was slow and hard to bowl on, adding that it would have been a lot more exciting had there been more pace in the wicket. It was a good wicket to bat on. New Zealand were bundled out here for under 100 in a one-day match last month and Virat Kohli repeated his disappointment in the Rajkot pitch, which is sure to have been heard by ground staff here and at other venues on this tour. There were six Test centuries, two from our side and four from their side.