'It might be a good wicket for maybe a day or two' - Ben Stokes on Visakhapatnam surface

Ahead of the second Test between India and England beginning from Friday, February 02 in Visakhapatnam, there have been widespread talks about how the pitch will play in the upcoming fixture. Notably, the surface for the first Test provided a good balance between bat and ball as England’s Ollie Pope scripted his team’s comeback with a splendid 196 in the second innings.

However, after India lost the first Test by 28 runs, they are expected to produce an even more challenging surface for the visitors for the second game. England skipper Ben Stokes shared his first thoughts about the pitch and stated that the wicket will remain good for the first two days and will spin more as the game progresses.

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“It might be a good wicket for maybe a day or two. But out here in India and other parts of the sub-continent, you tend to see it spin more and more as the Test goes deeper and deeper. Even though it looks like there’s a little bit more moisture in there with the heat – and today is very hot again – any footholes or stuff like that might come into play the further the Test goes. It might play a little bit better initially than it did last week, but we don’t like to go in with too many pre-conceived ideas,” Stokes was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

Notably, England stunned India in the series opener as they managed to win after being 190 runs behind in the first innings. Ollie Pope led the fightback for the visitors as he played one of the greatest knocks by a visiting batter in India. With the ball, debutant Tom Hartley shone as he picked 7/62 in to bundle out India for 202 chasing 231 for a win.

Also Read: James Anderson returns as England name XI for Visakhapatnam Test

India have a huge task of finalising Playing XI

Meanwhile, following the embarrassing loss, India’s condition has been further exacerbated by the absence of KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja for the second Test as both have been ruled out due to injuries. Hence, the Rohit Sharma-led side will have a tough time finalizing their playing XI with Virat Kohli also not available for the first two Tests due to personal reasons.