India won the second Test agaisnt England at Lord’s despite being in a spot of bother at the start of fifth day. Team India was playing with four pacers, resulting in a long tail.
It was however, the tail, especially Mohammad Shami (56*) and Jasprit Bumrah (34*) who bailed Team India out of trouble with an incredible 89-run partnership helping India made 298/8d and set England a target of 272 to win.
Former England pacer Steve Harmison believes that India can not rely on the tail to step-up in every game. He said that Ishant Shamra walking in at number 8 makes the Indian tail too long.
"If I was an Indian fan, I would always be wary that in English conditions the way the ball moves, having Ishant Sharma bat at No. 8 gives you a long long tail especially if he comes in challenging conditions from overhead,” Steve Hamrison said in a discussion on ESPNCricinfo.
However, he said that the tactic would work if the Indian batsmen delivered. The middle-order has not delivered collectively and Team India have depended on the openers to get them to a decent score in most of the innings of the series so far.
"You back your bowlers to take wickets and you back your batsmen to score runs. India did that at Lord's and they won that Test match, rightly so. They would be hopeful they do exactly the same up at Leeds,” he said
The third Test starts on 25 August at Headingley, Leeds.
(With ESPNCricinfo inputs)
