Gurkeerat, Amit Mishra in the fray for the 3rd Test at Nagpur

Gurkeerat, Amit Mishra in the fray for the 3rd Test at Nagpur: The last time India had played South Africa at Nagpur way back in 2010, it was Dale Steyn who tormented singlehandedly and ripped apart the Indian batting lineup with figures of 7/51 in the first innings. In the match, India lost 16 wickets to the Proteas pace bowlers and eventually lost the game by an innings and 6 runs. The wicket at Nagpur was a delight for the pace bowlers and that is how it has been in the domestic circuit matches too. But ahead of the third Test match between India and South Africa, there are clear indications that the wicket might be favorable for the spinners.

South Africa’s weakness against the spin bowling has been evident in the first two matches. The Vidarbha Cricket Association’s curator Amar Karlekar has confirmed that the wicket would definitely aid the spinners. Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper, prior to the match has clearly indicated that the team management might decide to go in with three spinners in the match. Stuart Binny, who was picked up for the second Test, might miss out and leggie Amit Mishra could come back in the playing eleven.

Gurkeerat Mann, the all-rounder from Punjab, who impressed with bat and ball during the Ranji Trophy this year, might get the nod too. Mann was in the fray to make a surprise Test debut at Bengaluru in the 2^nd Test but missed out.

“Seeing the nature of the wicket we got to go with a few changes. Obviously, I won’t disclose it here,” Kohli quoted. “For sub-continental conditions you will have that sort of spinning all-rounder more often than not fitting in for you. That will always be an area that we will experiment on. Other than that we haven’t really chopped and changed too much. It is just that one slot, which brings balance to the team, must be decided according to the conditions we are playing in,” the Kohli added.

Clearly the indication was that Binny’s slot could be given to either Mishra or Mann. When asked about the pitch and all the news that has been centered around the pitch during the tour, Kohli looked amazed at how much importance is being given to the pitches. “I don’t know why there is so much cry about the wickets in India. We absolutely have no problems playing on this sort of a wicket. If both teams don’t agree on playing on a particular wicket, then it is a wicket that is not suited for a game of cricket. But we are absolutely ready, all 11 of us. No problems,” Kohli said in a statement.

When asked about India’s stand of playing with three spinners, South African captain Hashim Amla said he was unfazed with the call. “It looks like a good cricket wicket, one that we kind of expect in the subcontinent. They have played three spinners in the first game as well, so it’s nothing new,” Amla said.

The Proteas skipper, Amla, had a great outing the last time he played at VCA Stadium in Nagpur. The elegant batsman scored an unbeaten 253 runs in the first innings of the match. Amla also suggested that he might not do what his counterpart is planning. He insisted that South Africa will not go in with three specialist spinners. He showed faith in Dean Elgar and JP Duminy who are part time spinners. “We have J P (Duminy) who bowls off-spin quite regularly, so he adds an option as a spinner. We have Dean Elgar who bowls left-arm orthodox. To play three frontline spinners, I am not sure if that is a possibility for us,” he added.

The South African coach, Russell Domingo, looked confident about turning the tables in the series. “We’ve done it before,” he said. “We know that we are still in the contest with two matches to play and the wickets are definitely going to produce results.

The third Test match begins on November 25. Hosts, India, lead the four match series 1-0.