Kohli’s reluctance to play ashwin is a sign of serious problems in the composition of the team

Kohli’s reluctance to play ashwin is a sign of serious problems in the composition of the team

An Indian set a batting record on the first day of the fourth cricket test of the ongoing India-England test series. A most unlikely one for the record holder, Shardul Thakur. Primarily a bowler, he now holds the record for the fastest ever fifty scored in tests in England. Given the long history of test cricket in England and generations of exceptional batsmen who have played there, it’s quite a record.

The unlikeliness of it is appropriate. It seems to reflect the approach to selecting the Indian team by the captain Virat Kohli and the management.

Kohli’s reluctance to pick Ashwin, the best spinner in the side whose bowling in overseas conditions has improved in the last three years, has baffled many former players. Some have been vocal about it.

Looking at the issue from Kohli’s explanation, it appears Ravindra Jadeja is indispensable even if his bowling has been harmless because he is the better batsman among the spinners. No one questions Jadeja’s superiority as a batsman.

However, there are questions on why Jadeja has become so indispensable that Ashwin cannot even get a look in, assuming Kohli will not play two spinners outside Asia.

It may have a lot to do with the fragile middle order that is long past its shelf life. Kohli, the batsman, appears to have passed his peak even if he remains a quality player. But the current middle order is among the more unreliable ones in test cricket which brings in the prospect that it needs to be bolstered by a batting all-rounder.

So, there is the issue of the captain’s lack of faith in the best spinner in the team, who may well be the top practitioner of his craft in test cricket. Add to this the captain’s reluctance to deal with his fragile middle order which has rendered it necessary for India to look for batting saviours from among the bowlers. In short, the Indian test team has a serious problem regardless of the outcome of this series. Unless the approach to selection changes, the problem is going to get worse.