England ready to put all-spin attack to the test in Vishakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam: Tom Hartley has not only won the opening Test for England but more importantly dented the psyche of the Indian batsmen, who might have to face an all-spin attack in the second Test starting here on Friday, a speial report in The Tribune, Chandigarh. says

England beat India by 28 runs in the opening Test with debutant Hartley bagging seven in the second innings having gone for plenty in the first.

McCullum is eagerly waiting to have a look at the track and judge how it could behave.

Traditionally a high-scoring ground, it has favoured spinners lately.

On the same note, McCullum said that if the pitch favours the spinners, , they would not be afraid to field an all-spin attack, hinting that uncapped spinner Shoaib Bashir, who missed out on Hyderabad due to visa delay, could be handed his debut. However, senior spinner Jack Leach’s knee injury will be a matter of concern.

But in Hartley, Joe Root, Rehan Ahmed and Bashir, he would still have four spinners and could replace Mark Wood with an extra batter.

“If the wickets continue to spin as much as what we saw in the first Test as the series goes on, we won’t be afraid to play all spinners or a balance of what we’ve got,” the former New Zealand skipper said.

“Bash (Bashir), he was obviously with us during our camp in Abu Dhabi, and he really impressed with his skill set. He fitted in seamlessly within the group, and he’s a guy who’s got an immense amount of enthusiasm, albeit at a young age and pretty limited in his first-class experience. When he arrived, boys gave him a huge cheer, and he got to witness something pretty special with the fellas bowling us to a Test win. He comes into calculations for the next Test match,” added McCullum. — PTI

Stokes lauds spinners

Long before debutant spinner Hartley bowled England to a famous win in the first Test against India, skipper Ben Stokes had asserted that the tweakers picked for the series “give us the best opportunity” to humble the Indians in their own backyard. “I think sometimes inexperience can be looked at into a bit too much. There’s no doubt that experience makes players feel more comfortable and settled, especially in this environment,” Stokes said. He added: “But the spinners we’ve selected on this tour are ones we think will give us the best opportunity to beat India.

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