Mohinder Amarnath backs Jasprit Bumrah's inclusion in Test cricket

World No.1 Team India, chasing the world record of winning 10 consecutive Test series, find themselves 0-1 down in South Africa with plenty of selection issues to ponder ahead of the second game. The former Indian cricketer Mohinder Amarnath, who was a part of the World Cup-winning team in 1983 under Kapil Dev, has offered his views before the start of the second Test in Centurion.

He was impressed with Jasprit Bumrah playing the traditional format of the game. He also opined that his inclusion will provide the visitors with more variations in the bowling department. The former Indian great, however, was not at all pleased with Ajinkya Rahane not playing the opening game of the tour.

“I was a little surprised that a player of Ajinkya Rahane’s calibre was ignored. True, he is going through a lean patch but that happens to all good players. Some players like to play on a faster track; he’s one of those who likes the ball to come on to the bat and struggles sometimes on slower wickets. Bumrah’s inclusion in this format is a good sign for India. Now they have a lot of variation as far as bowling is concerned whenever the team plays overseas,” he wrote in his column for TOI.

Amarnath impressed with Pandya

Mohinder Amarnath was particularly impressed with Hardik Pandya who batted aggressively in the first innings and brought India back in the match after being reduced to 92/7. He also believed that the overseas tours are always challenging and especially the opening game for the Asian teams who usually tend to play on slower wickets.

“Pandya should keep playing the way he did in the first innings [of 1st Test]. He loves hitting the ball and that’s the way to go. He also should bat higher as he can take the attack to the opposition. India need to show more guts against pace bowling and need someone at the top to come through.”

Amarnath also praised South African bowlers, in the end, crediting their line and lengths to the Indian batsmen who struggled to counter their impeccable bowling.