DHARAMSALA : “We have come to Dharamsala so many times, I feel at home here," quipped Rohit Sharma a day out from the final Test at the HPCA Stadium on Wednesday. "You get home-like food, the people here are so warm and talk so nicely."
The question was whether the conditions in Dharamsala are so alien in relation to some of the other Test venues. It was not the first time the query — is it almost an away game — was posed to the Indian captain.
When India and England arrived on Sunday, the immediate weather forecast did not look good. There were predictions of rain every day, with some snowfall on the first and fifth days of the Test. Both teams cancelled their training sessions for Monday, largely because of it.
In the 72 hours since, the weather has changed somewhat. The Sun has come out, throwing light on the breathtaking beauty of Dhauladhar Range which has been covered in shiny white snow because of the unseasonal fall. There is a bit on and off breeze, but the days still remain bright, making one think whether England would feel at home, perhaps more than India.
Even if the visitors might feel at home because of the weather, the surface is expected to be how it has been through the series. Runs for batters, bit of movement for seamers and then, of course, spin. Rohit called it a 'good Indian pitch' while England captain Ben Stokes said it seems like a 'belter'. The only change they have made is to bring in Mark Wood for Ollie Robinson thus eschewing the temptation of playing three seamers.
“Before we even got here, we were thinking of three seamers and one spinner. But turning up yesterday (Tuesday) and seeing the wicket and seeing it again today (Wednesday), going with two seamers and two spinners is probably the right call," Stokes said. "We thought there will be a bit more grass on the wicket just because of where we are, but overall, the wicket looks like a belter."
For India, as much as Rohit left the combination ambiguous, it is likely that they will retain the same combination with Jasprit Bumrah coming in for Akash Deep. The last time India played here in a Test, Kuldeep Yadav made his debut in 2017 against Australia (he took four wickets to help the hosts win the series).
This time, though, the series is already won with all bowlers chipping in with valuable contributions. They all have helped Rohit adapt better as a captain as the series progressed. “Luckily, I have got a few guys around who understand me well, why I am thinking like this because there is a lot of planning and talking that happens while the game is on — which is in the middle of the game. Suddenly... sometimes you have to change on the field looking at how things are moving, I am glad that I got a lot of these guys who understand... sometimes you have to adapt whatever is required for the team,” he said, before adding that this series has been a learning experience for him as a Test captain.
This, coming from a captain who is yet to lose a Test series, sums up how much England have pushed India in this series. The scoreline 3-1 does no justice to how competitive the four matches have been, how on various occasions England were on top, and how India still managed to comeback and win sessions and matches.
Which is why, despite the disappointment of losing the series, Stokes remained positive. “We have progressed so much on this tour. In a results-based business, that can sometimes sound stupid and deluded. You go on about India not having their best players. You look at the players we came here with, we were written off completely before we had played a game. People couldn't believe that we have picked Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir and now you look at what they have achieved. We have seen Ollie Pope and Ben Duckett play those innings. I am looking at it based on the progression of individuals and I am very happy as a captain,” he said before adding how strong India is at home and that England aren’t the only team to come and lose.
Indeed, they aren’t. In fact, only three teams have come to India and beaten them over a course of a series in the 21st century. It tells a lot. Not just about the juggernaut of India, but also how on so many occasions over the past month, England came close to doing that.
As much as no one would be surprised by the current scoreline, at the start of the series one thing was clear. England were not going to go down without a fight. Their were going to come out swinging, hopefully land a few punches and entertain. They have inarguably done that over 16 Test match days.
Another five days of entertainment awaits in Dharamsala. Maybe four, or even three, but it promises to be a fun ride.