The England Cricket Team will be touring India for a five-match Test Series and aiming to recreate the historic 2012 Test series when they defeated the Indian team in India. They have the distinction of being the last team to win a Test series in India. This time the new spinners Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir will showcase their wizardry against the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma on the Indian rank turners and will try to fill the shoes of legendary Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar.
Graeme Swann lauded Monty Panesar’s incredible bowling and childlike innocence in the series calling it a stark contrast to his own fairly ‘good performance’. England’s bold decision to debut Joe Root in the last Test of the series paid off and Virat Kohli who was emerging to greatness during that phase scored a memorable ton and served a warning of what was coming up. MS Dhoni was leading the Indian side in that series and he also scored a 99 alongside Kohli’s 103.
“We had been told beforehand not to say anything to this bloke [Virat Kohli],” Swann revealed, emphasizing Kohli’s competitive spirit. Steven Finn’s war of words with Virat eventually backfired as he got thrashed by the 23-year-old youngster at that time and completely lost the plot. Virat Kohli is known for replying to sleds and critics with his bat.
“Steven Finn got driven for a couple of incredible fours and he lost the plot and had a got at him and realized his mistake straight away. Virat roared up like a tiger and Finn just doubled down and got smashed everywhere,” Swann added.
Virat Kohli And Rohit Sharma Will Be The Biggest Threat For English Bowlers
However, amidst all the memories which included Virat Kohli’s fiery spirit and Cheteshwar Pujara’s nimble footwork, it was Monty Panesar who truly owned the series. He took 17 wickets in four matches with a perfect shape and flawless consistency. He stood head and shoulders above the rest in that series and eventually helped England in winning the series.
England’s upcoming challenge against India will commence in Hyderabad on January 25 and the echoes of the series in 2012 will be playing in their ears. The new-generation England team will be hoping to win the series against India and recreate the 2012 memories. If they can win the series in India it will be the first time in 12 years that India will lose a Test series at home against any opponent.
The five-match Test series will be a great battle between the unknown challenges of Bashir and Hartley and the experience of Ashwin and Jadeja. Virat Kohli, the 23-year-old young prodigy during the 2012 series is now the greatest batter of this generation and it will be interesting to see how England plans against the likes of him and Rohit Sharma, who himself has a great record in Tests in the subcontinent.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will be the main threat to the English bowlers as the experienced duo have a phenomenal record in India. The last time England toured India was in 2021 when they were beaten 3-1 in the series as Rohit Sharma, Axar Patel, and Ravichandran Ashwin emerged as the star performers for the Indian team.
