India look to regroup

The Indian team has adopted some desperate measures to improve its batters’ outing against New Zealand’s bowlers, especially the spinners, as the likelihood of a turning pitch for the third Test has dominated the pre-match talks.

The net session at the Wankhede Stadium reflected the state of urgency the team management is in ahead of the final Test beginning on Friday, as even veteran batters such as Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have found the going tough in this series.

Ahead of training, the team management asked the staff to draw extended white lines along off and leg stumps at four practice nets, an exercise generally aimed at keeping the batters aware of the line and length.

In the first Test in Bengaluru, the vaunted Indian batting line-up succumbed to the probing line and bounce. In the second match in Pune, they were outwitted by left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner, who took 13 wickets across two innings.

More than the conventional spin, the Indian batters had no solution to Santner’s deliveries that pitched on the same spot at the MCA Stadium track but offered different results — some turning away while some straightening up. So, it was clear that head coach Gautam Gambhir wanted his batters to enter the final Test with better preparation.

India’s assistant coach Abhishek Nayar gave a peek into the struggles of his wards, and said keeping a close watch on the spinner’s hand is important.

“You need to understand when certain balls are turning, certain balls are going straight, it tends to play with your mind. At that point, it’s really important for a batter to understand how the ball is coming out of the hand, which balls are undercutting, which balls are over-spinning,” Nayar said.

A batter should be able to tackle such a situation mentally as well, Nayar said.

“Sometimes it can be intimidating when you see a ball turning or going straight on. When you play domestic cricket, you play on black soil pitches. But sometimes the conditions, the position you are in and the form you are in can get the better of you. But you need to focus a little harder,” he added.

For that, they summoned a retinue of net bowlers, 25 no less, with a good mix of local spinners and pacers who helped the senior players go through their paces for three hours or so. Almost every member of the Indian contingent had a long hit in the nets, including Mohammed Siraj, who played with Virat Kohli’s bat while unleashing a few big hits.

The pitch had a good grass cover in the morning, but it was soon battered down by a heavy roller.