India Pace Attack Needs: Beyond Jasprit Bumrah’s Brilliance
The India Pace Attack Needs more than just the brilliance of Jasprit Bumrah to succeed in challenging overseas conditions like England. The recent Headingley Test loss to England, where India failed to defend a 371-run target, starkly highlighted this deficiency. While Bumrah remains a world-class operator, the lack of control and defensive discipline from the support cast, particularly the third and fourth seamers, proved costly.
In the crucial 79th over on Day 5, with England needing just 30 runs, Shubman Gill’s field placements for Shardul Thakur indicated a clear desire for control. Yet, despite a 7-2 off-side field, Thakur conceded a single and a boundary in two balls, passages that, though near-meaningless in a lost cause, spoke volumes about India’s lack of penetration and, more critically, control.
The Leaky Support Cast: Numbers at Headingley
Across the Headingley Test, fast bowlers generally maintained an economy of 3.99. However, India’s third and fourth seamers, Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur, had significantly higher economy rates, going at 6.28 and 5.56 respectively. While Krishna managed to pick up as many wickets as Bumrah (5 wickets across both innings), his inability to stem the flow of runs, especially with his short lengths in the first innings (economy of 6.40 for 128 runs in 20 overs), allowed England to score freely. Thakur, aside from a brief flicker post-Tea on the final day where he dismissed Ben Duckett and Harry Brook, struggled to stem the flow or create consistent pressure. In the second innings, Thakur conceded 51 runs in 10 overs at an economy rate of 5.10, and in the first innings, 38 runs in just six overs at 6.30.
This isn’t a new problem for India. In their previous Test in England (Edgbaston 2022), when defending 378, Shardul Thakur and Mohammed Siraj, as change bowlers, combined for 26 overs in the second innings and conceded at an alarming 6.26 runs per over. This contrasts sharply with the Oval Test in 2021, where India’s attack, even against a pre-Bazball England side, managed to restrict the openers, who took 40 overs to add 100 in a chase of 368. In that game, Thakur himself was much more economical, going at 2.75 runs per over.
The Imperative for Consistency and Control
This consistent challenge of “shutting down the exits” when wickets aren’t falling is what Shubman Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir must now address. When Bumrah or Siraj are resting, the change seamers need to commit to the “mundane”: consistently hitting good lengths on off stump, or bowling dry lines wide outside off to a 7-2 field, forcing batters to reach or retreat. This “boring, necessary cricket” is crucial to building pressure. While Gill was reactive with field placements, his task was compounded by his change seamers being hit on both sides of the wicket. India Pace Attack Needs
The invaluable lessons from bowlers like Ishant Sharma, known for his ability to soak up hours and dry up runs even without taking wickets, and Mohammed Shami, whose discipline created pressure that others capitalized on, highlight the importance of control. As former bowling coach Bharat Arun argued, Shami’s consistent beating of the bat wasn’t a flaw but a function of creating pressure. India Pace Attack Needs
A Steep Learning Curve for Young Pacers
Beyond Bumrah and Siraj, India’s current fast bowling contingent in England has limited experience, with a combined total of only 25 Tests among them. Their learning curve is steep, and they’ll need to rapidly find the attack-versus-defense balance, especially with Bumrah expected to be rested for at least two of the remaining four Tests. India Pace Attack Needs
Gautam Gambhir acknowledged this post-defeat: “These are still early days. When you go to Australia, England or South Africa, experience matters a lot. If you start judging your bowlers after every Test match, then how will the bowlers develop? How will the bowling attack develop? When you talk about data or stats, it is also important to know about experience.” He also stated, “If you look at 3-4 other bowlers, they don’t have that much experience. But they have got quality. That’s why they are in this dressing room. And we are going to keep backing them. Because it’s not about one-two. It’s about building a fast bowling battery which can serve India for a long time. I think we just got to be more consistent.” India Pace Attack Needs
The fact remains that India has now lost seven of their last nine Tests, including the one at Headingley despite Bumrah’s presence. The lessons are clear, and the India Pace Attack Needs to scale its learning curve quickly if they are to turn their fortunes around in this crucial series. India Pace Attack Needs
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