- Wednesday, February 26, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIA captain Virat Kohli is set to return for the second Test against New Zealand starting in Mumbai on Friday (3) and he will face some challenges while picking his playing XI. From weather to getting the right combination, the skipper, who skipped the T20 international series and the first Test, will have his task cut out.
India failed to beat New Zealand despite cornering them on the fifth day of the first Test match in Kanpur as the last pair resisted India’s in-form spinners for almost 10 overs. Ajinkya Rahane led India in that match and now with Kohli back into the ranks, one would expect a slight rejig in the playing combination.
Also at the Wankhede Stadium which is hosting a Test match since 2016, the hosts may only get four days to enforce a win due to heavy rain that could be a dampener on the first day. Besides, the underlying moisture will also bring an extra Black Caps pacer in Neil Wagner into the question.
One key question that Kohli and new head coach Rahul Dravid would have to answer is the form of Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara. Since both those batters are not getting runs, one is wondering who would Kohli replace when he comes back. Will it be either Rahane or Pujara or Shreyas Iyer, who despite scoring a hundred and fifty in his debut Test in Green Park, is not assured a spot in the playing XI in Mumbai.
The fact that Mumbai is the home turf of Rahane could make it less likely that he is dropped for the game.
Pujara is another batter who is not finding his touch but given the fact that a foreign Test series is coming up next, his place in the XI would be more than assured.
Opener Mayank Agarwal is another batter who is not among runs and Kohli could get into the team at his expense but that also raises one key question: Who would open with Shubman Gill if Agarwal is dropped?
One could be Pujara but given his shaky form, sending him to open the innings will not be the best of moves. That leaves wicket-keeper-batter Wriddhiman Saha, who has been declared fit for the second Test, to be a makeshift opener.
In the bowling department, India may bring in Mohammed Siraj as Ishant Sharma is looking out of rhythm. The home team may still go with three spinners as they did in the first Test where the slow bowlers picked most of the wickets.
The rain-induced moisture and a pitch devoid of sunlight could mean that both speedsters and spinners would be in the equation in the game.
