At one stage on the first afternoon of the Mohali Test, the scorecard told a very interesting tale. England were 144 for five, and the wickets column had one next to each of the five bowlers that Virat Kohli had used. To understand the significance of that, you only have to rewind to the recent history of Indian cricket.
If you check out the footage from two decades ago, you will see how beautifully Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad bowled on tours of England and South Africa. But with no third seamer of any quality, and Anil Kumble rendered ineffective by the conditions, India didn’t so much as win a Test.
A decade later, things were little different. Sreesanth and Zaheer Khan combined thrillingly to win India a Test at the Wanderers in December 2006, but after South Africa had drawn level in Durban, the series hinged on a Test in surprisingly Asian conditions in Cape Town. But with Harbhajan Singh sitting on the bench, Munaf Patel, whose fitness was always in doubt, was given the nod as third seamer.
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Despite India taking a lead of 41 after the first innings, a batting collapse in the second left South Africa with just over 200 to seal the series.
A crocked Munaf bowled just one over. Sreesanth’s performance had tailed away after the emotional energy expended in Johannesburg and Durban, and with Kumble not near his best, Zaheer was left to plough a lone furrow. It wasn’t enough.
Things were no different in South Africa four years later. Again, India reached Newlands all square in the series. Again, they had South Africa in disarray in the second innings at 130 for six — a lead of just 128 — but with no fifth bowler to share the load, Zaheer, Sreesanth, Harbhajan and Ishant Sharma ran out of puff.
Jacques Kallis struck his second hundred of the game, Mark Boucher saved his career with a defiant 55, and India didn’t even attempt to go after the eventual target of 340.
For India, playing five bowlers has never been easy. Since Kapil Dev’s halcyon years, there simply hasn’t been a quality all-rounder to fall back on in times of crisis. Manoj Prabhakar and Irfan Pathan had their moments with both bat and ball, but neither put together a body of work significant enough to be considered A-list.
Ravichandran Ashwin now gives India the option of playing the extra bowler. He averages more than 34 with the bat, and less than 25 with the ball. Capable of batting at either No 6 or No 7 in home conditions, he also allows others with more than one string to their bow to come in and play with relative freedom.
Ravindra Jadeja and Jayant Yadav have already delivered important cameos with the bat during this home season, but what has been most vital to India’s success has been the support the spinners have enjoyed from the two pace bowlers.
In Mohali, it was Umesh Yadav that broke the opening partnership with a spiteful lifter to Haseeb Hameed. And after Jayant Yadav, the first spinner to be given the ball by Virat Kohli, had snared Joe Root with one that hurried on, Ashwin had Alastair Cook caught behind.
Mohammed Shami then halted a brief English revival with a short ball that Moeen Ali miscued to fine leg, and when Ravindra Jadeja had Ben Stokes stumped, each of the quintet had a wicket each. Even as the afternoon wore on and Jonny Bairstow’s gutsy 89 brought England back into the fray, the pressure never relented.
Kohli no longer has to worry about bowlers to fill in some overs. Each of the five is a potent threat. Shami and Umesh can do damage with both new ball and old, and Jayant Yadav’s consistently has allowed his captain to give the two frontline spinners more of a breather. A problem of plenty isn’t one that many Indian captains have been able to enjoy.
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