Former England skipper Nasser Hussain Hussain believes that India’s win in the second Test over England has set up the rest of the series perfectly and expects the hosts to come back “even harder.”
Yashasvi Jaiswal’s blistering 209 in the first innings and Shubman Gill’s third Test ton combined with a clinical outing with the ball, India registered a massive 106-run victory to level the series at 1-1.
With three matches still to be played, India will back themselves to clinch the series. With history on their side and with the likes of KL Rahul, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja likely to link up with the squad for the remaining three matches, Hussain expects a strong Indian side to feature in the rest of the series.
“It is set up perfectly, with three Tests to play. I think it will be a tight series but England are going to have to expect India to come back even harder. India have missed quite a few key players so far,” Hussain said as quoted from Sky Sports.
“Mohammad Shami, I think, is out for the series, Ravi Jadeja could well be out for another Test match and Virat Kohli has been out of the first two. We are talking about some serious cricketers there. Kohli may well come back in, KL Rahul also, so I would expect a stronger Indian side in those last three games of the series. England will know that they’re going to have to up their game,” Hussain added.
The 55-year-old went on to praise “magical” Jasprit Bumrah and called him the reason why the hosts ended up wrapping up a 106-run victory in the second match.
The 30-year-old pacer scalped 6/45 in the first innings and produced a bewitching spell which rattled England’s batting line-up.
Even in the second innings, he went on to claim three wickets, which forced the visitors to succumb to a score of 292.
“It was a fantastic Test match. Brilliant pitch and brilliant sides going hard at each other. One way or the other England fighting hard as they often do. They often give away a first-inning lead as they did in the first Test. But they fought back well with their performance yesterday. And I think it was really the magic of Jasprit Bumrah. He got 3 today, but that spell in the first innings – 6 for 40 odd, blew away England for 250 on a really good flat pitch.
The magic of Bumrah and the ball to Ollie Pope, that spell he bowled was, in the end, the difference between the two sides,” Hussain said.
India and England will now head to Rajkot for the third Test, on February 15.
