CHENNAI: India didn't just win the first Test at Chennai against Bangladesh. In the process, they also stopped a long run of giving — sometimes gifting — wickets to left-arm spinners. Over the last five or so years in India, the likes of Lasith Embuldeniya and Praveen Jayawickrama (Sri Lanka), Jack Leach and Tom Hartley (England), Ajaz Patel (New Zealand) and Matthew Kuhnemann (Australia) have either played their part in famous wins, taken loads of wickets or been lone reasons to cheer in otherwise dull campaigns for visiting teams.
The last time the hosts didn't concede a single wicket to a left-arm spinner was also to Bangladesh at Indore in 2019. Taijul Islam toiled unsuccessfully as he gave away 120 runs in 28 overs.
Since then, Islam has improved a lot. In India's last tour to Bangladesh, Islam probed finished with eight wickets across two Tests. The 32-year-old, who sat out the first Test, is expected to feature in the Kanpur match starting Friday. With the Green Park surface expected to be on the slower side unlike the Chepauk wicket, both teams may opt for a third spinner.
For Rohit Sharma and Co, either local boy Kuldeep Yadav or Axar Patel may replace a pacer in the playing XI. Similarly, the visitors might go with Islam at the cost of a fast bowler. If he does, the hosts will have the sizable challenge of facing up to him because they have had a weakness against this particular bowling type (Patel, currently in Sri Lanka, will be a curious onlooker).
Since January 2022, Indian batters have lost their wickets to the left-arm spinners a whopping 69 times in 12 Tests. They are third on the list with New Zealand (72 wickets in 17 matches) and England (70 wickets in 19 matches) looking most vulnerable against such bowlers and occupying the first and second spots respectively.
A close look into records of individual India batters against such bowlers doesn't paint a pretty picture. Skipper Rohit Sharma averages 39.66 and got out 6 times in 18 innings. Star batter Virat Kohli's records too are dismal in that period against left-arm spinners. He averages 35.40 in 17 innings and has lost his wickets five times to them. KL Rahul, who has made his comeback to the Test side in the ongoing series, has also struggled against such bowlers — an average of 28.33 from 9 innings and he got out thrice. Opener Shubman Gill's average is 39.66 in 18 innings and has been removed six times.
Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja seem to be exceptions. In 10 innings, Pant, who played his first Test after more than two years in Chennai, averages 95.66 against the left-arm spinners. But the explosive batter was also sent back by them three times. Jaiswal's average is a staggering 109 in 10 innings while Jadeja averages 105.50 from 18 innings. Both of them got out twice to such tweakers.
Given the recent records of Indian batters against them, entry of a slow left-arm spinner in the opponents' ranks could well be a big sub-plot in the second Test. What makes the matter more interesting is the upcoming three-Test series against New Zealand, which begins next month. Patel, who already had a successful India tour three years ago wherein he claimed a record 10 wickets in an innings in Mumbai, will lead the spin attack that also has left-arm tweakers in the form of Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra (batting all-rounder). How Indian batters fare against Islam in Kanpur could well decide their fate going into their next assignment against the visiting Kiwis.
