India’s second opener? Mayank Agarwal & Prithvi Shaw seek closure.

From being the third choice opener at the start of the England series, KL Rahul is now the only certainty on top of the order. Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan find themselves together again, both discarded from the Test squad. What took Vijay just two Tests, Dhawan accomplished in four.

Which brings us to Mayank Agarwal and Prithvi Shaw. Shaw was part of the squad in England, which, if you go by the Karun Nair selection logic means that he may not play in either of the upcoming Tests. Agarwal is 27, Shaw is 18. Both have robust numbers.

Before Agarwal was picked, it appeared Shaw’s name had already been inked in the team-sheet. Not so simple anymore.

In the West Indies’ tour match, the two opened the innings. Agarwal made 90, Shaw 8. A two-day game rarely gives batsmen second chances. Going by the team management fixation with ‘current form’, Agarwal would walk in with his latest mark-sheet. Going by the team management’s inclination towards young guns (take Risabh Pant for instance), Shaw could walk in. And going by the team management inclination towards muddled thinking, both could walk in, with KL Rahul at three, and Pujara on the bench.

It’s happened before. This is a home series. There’s a ticket to Australia up for grabs. And India is already thinking ahead at chasing down 500 in the fourth innings in Adelaide.

This of course means little to Shaw or Agarwal. Both aware that they will soon be sharing the Indian dressing room. Yet, in all possibility, only one will become the 293^rd Indian Test cricketer.

Agarwal and Shaw found themselves together in the Board President’s XI dressing room after the second and last day’s play. With them was India’s 292 Test player, Hanuma Vihari.

There was a shyness between the two openers, one that led to an awkward silence. It took Vihari to break it.

Hanuma Vihari (HV): Have you spoken to Dravid sir….y’kno I called Dravid sir the day before I made my debut and told him I was making my debut.

He spoke to me for a couple of minutes and gave his inputs and I thought it eased my nerves a little bit, because it is coming from a legend and you know that you belong here. He just told me that you have the skillset, you have the mindset and the temperament, just go out there and enjoy yourself. I would like to give him a lot of credit for that because my journey with India A was very important for me to come here, because not only that I performed there, but the way he gave us inputs, that made me a better player

Both Shaw and Agarwal look at Vihari dazed.

Prithvi Shaw (PS): Bro…you just made a speech…nice one…

HV: No problem…it’s what I told the press too. Not seen my name in print like this before so I read it a few times. It was fun. Now I know it by heart.

Mayank Agarwal (MA): They’ll tell us the day before…

HV: Yes…y’kno, jokes apart, how this team goes by current form, maybe both of you will play and I will be dropped

PS: Bro…don’t say that…you’re always 292…and we’re openers…

MA: You’re middle order da…

HV: You made 90, Prithvi made 8 and I made only 3…so current form…

Vihari walks out, leaving the two together.

PS: Bro…you think we’ll open together…that’s crazy…Rahul will definitely open

MA: Rahul will definitely open da…

PS: Should we both call up Dravid sir…how to chill bro…before they announce the team…

MA: Dunno da…we have to use it like phone-a-friend, why don’t you just call Rishabh…he’s No. 291…he made his Test debut last month only da…call Rishabh...he’ll talk to you like a bro da

Before Agarwal can finish, Shaw is on the phone with Rishabh Pant

PS: Rish Bro…how’re you bro…big question bro…how was it before your Test debut…I’m asking for Mayank…he’s nervous as sh…

Agarwal snatches the phone…

MA: Rish…Prithvi just talking rubbish da…he wants to ask for himself…passing the buck…he’s going to make his Test debut…

Rishabh Pant (RA): M’ynk …put it on speaker yaar…I gotta message for both of you…both of you are like my brothers and I love you both…and y’kno 4^th October is my birthday and I will be very happy if we are all playing together but if say, only two of us are…I don’t want the third to have bad feelings…it’s ok…dressing room is good…maybe third guy will come on as substitute fielder and we’ll all be on the field together in a Test match for India…bros I’m getting very emotional too…

PS: All that is ok, how do we handle the build-up to the Test cap, bro

RA: What build up?

MA: Anxiety da…stress, tension…should we call up Dravid sir?

RA: Why? I’m telling you don’t take stress. You’ll either be 293 or 294 or 295…it’s coming guys…I know it…and in the evening, treat for my birthday…

MA: What treat? You know we’ll be eating in the team hotel and management picks the bill, da

RA: It’s nice to say bro…don’t spoil my birthday

PS: Bro…thanks…talk soon bro

Shaw shrugs as he looks at Agarwal…the two decide to call Test Cap No. 290, Jasprit Bumrah

PS: Hi Jas bro…how’re you? gotta minute…

JB (overstepping): Hi..Hi…Prithvi…thanks in advance

PS: Oh right, bro…congrats…great win…bro…can I ask you a question…how did you handle it bro…before your Test debut

JB: It was ok…I had already made by ODI debut 2 years before…so it was good…ok…why are you asking? Oh right, for yourself? But what if Mayank A…

MA: Hi Jaspreet…Mayank here, congrats, great win da…loved it…we’re here together…just wondering…what prep…

JB: No…no prep…enjoy the moment…

As there are no answers from Bumrah either, the two decide on one final call. No 289. Hardik Pandya. They make a video call.

Hardik Pandya (HP) (in a bathtub): Hi guys…wasup? Just taking it easy…back is screwed…ready for Test debut and all…good luck…don’t take any stress…if you’re nervous…enjoy the nerves man…it’s a once in a life-time opp…I’m telling you…nothing like it…will miss not being with you…but we can do a video call that day in the evening…would love to speak to both of you…no hard feelings…oh what did you call for? Seeing me in a bath tub…you dirty boys…

Feeling better after speaking with Pandya, they decide to call No 288, Kuldeep Yadav

It was either the phone line or Kuldeep’s thickly accented American-Australian English fusion, that they understood very little of what he said. They quickly congratulate him and get off the phone.

Enjoying this sport way too much, they decide to call No 287, Karun Nair.

Karun Nair (taped message) Hi…this is Karun Nair…if you’re calling to ask how I felt being in the squad for England…and not playing a game…press 1…if you want to know how it feels being left out of the squad for the West Indies’ series press 2…if you..

They hang up. And look at each other blankly. They then hug each other. Suddenly aware of certain realities.

(However plausible this may sound, this is largely a work of fiction)

First published here

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Why Kohli & Shastri should have used their own mind instead of ours.

Murali Vijay’s Test career could be all but over. How did that happen? Wasn’t he supposed to be the guardian of the worlds outside off stump? Our man Friday in England? By Sunday, 12^th August, Lord’s was lost. As was Vijay. Bagging a pair often questions whether you have one.

Scores of 20, 6, 0, 0 marked Vijay’s slide, his Test average slipped below 40. Seven years ago, Virender Sehwag bagged a pair in Birmingham. Even though he played 16 more Tests scattered over the next 18 months, that England series marked Sehwag’s slide. 4, 18, 0, 3 – Gambhir’s series tally in England, 2014, was one run less than Vijay’s in 2018 in as many innings. Over the following two years and two months, Gambhir played two more Tests.

England does that to some of the best. What, only the other day, Alastair Cook made his retirement call. And he’s English.

In eight innings so far, India’s other opener, KL Rahul has scored 113 runs to Cook’s 109 in seven innings. Both are exceptional slip catchers.

After falling leg before wicket and hands in the air to Bumrah, England’s other opener, Keaton Jennings’ dismissal received more replays than even Virat Kohli google eyed one to Adil Rashid in the Lord’s ODI. He’s been possibly the most condemned opener both sides. Yet, with 130 runs in the series, he could well open the batting in all five Tests and beyond.

And what about Shikhar Dhawan – unlike openers on both sides, he’s made it to double figures in every innings – in all, 158 runs in six innings.

Series won, 3-1 up, England has lost one of their openers. India on the other hand, may have lost three openers in their three defeats.

Each one has been in varying degrees held responsible for India’s defeats. If India fields new openers in the fifth Test, they too could add to the tally.

First Test: India opened with Dhawan-Vijay. This move lacked conviction, it took one defeat, that also a close one (31 runs) to toss the opening plan aside. In the second Test, India opened with Vijay-Rahul.

It took a second defeat to toss this opening aside too. By the third Test, India was opening with another pair – Dhawan-Rahul.

Dhawan’s dismissals and overseas record come in for a lot of flak – almost as much as Cheteshwar Pujara’s.

Writing these two off (for their overseas record) is an occupation in itself; it can be so easily cut-paste from one opinion to the other that even if there was some doubt to it, that doubt has been masked.

Dhawan might have outscored Vijay, 39 to 26 runs in the first Test, even occupying the crease for 120 minutes to Vijay’s 96 but public opinion thought otherwise.

The team went with that opinion. It didn’t work. So, next Test they went with their gut. It worked, India won, they stuck to their gut.

Few foresaw Vijay’s failures, it forced the team’s hand. But in a way, it was in sync with its underlying belief of aggression over defence.

Something, if all things are equal (a home or Asia series), it would quite happily revert to at the drop of a more traditional Test batsman.

Pujara’s unbeaten century however, manoeuvers the team in another direction. It asks uncomfortable questions of the taskmasters – makes them revisit the follies of dropping him for the first Test.

Today, Virat Kohli as Test captain is a constant. The others are variables. And while a defeat often hurls a lot of questions, there really is only one that needs to be asked – why is there so little belief in the abilities of players?

Why has it come to a point that the batsmen are always on notice? Is public opinion, that’s fickle enough to change from one session to the other, running this team?

It’s empowering to know that our collective criticism of Dhawan’s game outside off ultimately decides he sits on the bench.

After Kuldeep Yadav’s success in the T20s and ODIs, everyone and their uncle backed him for Test selection. He was not picked for the first Test. However, after the loss at Birmingham, even the rain gods couldn’t stop Kuldeep – he was picked after the first day was washed out, with the rest of the Test under a cloud. India missed that extra seamer. Kuldeep bagged a pair. He returned home with Vijay, bowling nine overs in whites.

By the fourth Test, there was enough indication for India to play two spinners. England had announced their team on match eve with both Adil Rashid and India’s old tormentor from Southampton, Moeen Ali.

In 2014, when Moeen Ali grabbed eight wickets at Southampton, Jadeja wangled five – three of which were when England was on the charge. Jadeja was not picked. Ali took nine wickets. Ashwin who did play, three wickets for his troubles from 51 overs.

Whether Ashwin was fit or not is an altogether different debate. India ignored both history and the conditions. Reasons for picking Jadeja or retaining Kuldeep far outweighed by those in favour of Hardik Pandya.

Just as bowling Kuldeep was an afterthought at Lord’s, Pandya was at Southampton. His 17 overs went for 85, he made 4 and 0.

In all likelihood, Jadeja will come in for Pandya at the Oval. If he doesn’t, then Jadeja for Ashwin. Whatever happens, it will be for a dead rubber.

With so little belief in Jadeja, retaining Kuldeep may not have been a bad idea. But they were swayed by one match with conditions that were far more ideal for rainwater harvesting than a wrist spinner’s first Test in England with the Duke ball.

It might have been a close series, and that too with such little conviction. Wonder how it would’ve panned out, if they had used their brains, instead of ours.

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