England vs India: Test of drive at Rose Bowl

Here is a comparative analysis to assess where the two teams stand ahead of the fourth Test at Rose Bowl in Southampton.

Ravichandran Ashwin has already proved that he’s a lot more effective than Adil Rashid (File | AP)

The series was touted to be a heavyweight clash between two equally matched sides and while the opening two games presented a slightly different story, the narrative seemed to have changed after the third Test. India’s batting stood up at Nottingham and the result went their way. India had issues to address but the same was true for England. Let’s do a comparative analysis to assess where the two teams stand ahead of the fourth Test at Rose Bowl in Southampton.

Opening worries both

There’s very little to choose between the sides. India tried three opening pairs in three Tests and while England has stuck with the same pair, the numbers produced by them aren’t painting a rosy picture. Alastair Cook is going through one of the worst phases of his illustrious career and Keaton Jennings is fighting for survival. India’s latest pair of Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul has ignited hopes of solving the opening riddle. Dhawan has fought and Rahul has shown glimpses of potential but both are yet to score fifties.

England better in the middle

Joe Root at three for England, despite failures in the last two Tests, will beat Cheteshwar Pujara. Similarly, Ollie Pope is no contest for India’s No 4, Virat Kohli. At five, Ajinkya Rahane has played only one knock of note and Jonny Bairstow for England has offered a little more. In fact, this is where, in the lower-order, England scores over most teams in the world. Bairstow is followed by Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes, and maybe, Moeen Ali in Southampton. This provides England the depth unheard-unseen of in recent times across the cricketing globe. India, on the other hand, has Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya and Ravi Ashwin to follow Rahane. But as we found out in the first innings of the third Test, depth doesn’t always guarantee loads of runs.

Advantage in spin

In 2014, the key difference between the sides was England out-spinning India over the course of five Tests. Ali took wickets in almost all games, which included a lot of top-order batsmen. That’s not the case in 2018, for Ashwin has already proved that he’s a lot more effective than Adil Rashid and even if Ali were to play in Southampton, it’s quite likely that Indian spinners will be more effective.

Even in attack

If we were to go by only pedigree and past performances, the English attack will look miles ahead of India’s. But if you were to look at how the two bowling sides fared in Nottingham, you’ll be forced to put the Indian pace quartet slightly ahead. The English attack has a little more discipline and sharpness, but the Indian attack is more varied. The addition of Jasprit Bumrah and Ashwin giving regular breathers to the pace department has brought the two attacks closer.

If momentum is a real thing in sport, India should start the fourth Test as favourites. But if momentum could sway the outcome, England had no business losing the third Test. By now, it’s quite apparent that both teams have their weaknesses and the team that’s able to hide them better is the one ending up on the right side of the result.Live on Sony Six at 3:30 pm.