Dom Sibley has been dismissed by a left-arm spinner five times for an average of just 22.2 in Tests
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has always been smart about their planning for bigger tours or series and the visit to Sri Lanka in late January couldn't have served a better purpose for Joe Root's men who now look to emulate their historic 2012 feat, still a dream for all Test teams around the globe, of beating India in India. England wrapped up a 2-0 cleansweep over a beleaguered Sri Lankan side in Galle with Root returning to his ominous best, but the victory failed to overshadowed the follies called out in the England batting lineup by the Sri Lankan spinners, primarily their vulnerability against left-arm spin.
Lasith Embuldeniya, Sri Lanka's slow left-arm orthodox bowler, picked 15 wickets in the two-match series against England, at an average of 27.66, 12 of whom were England's top 6 from the batting lineup. From the six, who combined to average just 24.75 against the bowler, the opening pair of Zak Crawley and Dom Sibley fared the worst, having been dismissed seven times in two matches with the pair averaging just 6.57. From the remaining four, Daniel Lawrence fell victim to the variety twice, managing 35 runs in 89 balls against Embuldeniya, while Root and Jos Buttler were the only batters to have escaped without a scratch. And Jonny Bairstow is presently not part of the squad.
The vulnerability against left-arm spin was a factor that the Lankans exploited immensely, albeit in a losing cause. But it has opened a new door of opportunity for the Indian attack. A further dissection of England's newest addition: Sibley, Crawley, Lawrence alongside the returning Rory Burns, all of whome are likely to be part of the XI for the opener in Chennai, shows that they combine to average only 18.69 against the variety in their Test career with Crawley's average and dismissal rate of 10.2 and 23.75 respectively being the worst among the four. Sibley, on the other hand, has been dismissed five times, the most among the four, by a left-arm spinner. Burns, who had missed the Sri Lanka series owing to birth of his first child, and is a left-hand batsman, averages the least against a left-armer among all spin vareities, although he has been dismissed more often by a right-arm off-spinner.
Besides the four, Buttler too averages the least against left-arm spinners and has been dismissed the most number of times by this variety (6 at 27) since 2017. Ben Stokes, another left-hand batsman, fares comparitively better against left-arm spinners, averaging 37.4. However, the two were undone four times each in their previous two Test series against India by this variety, courtesy Ravindra Jadeja.
England's batting lineup against left-arm spinners in Tests...
| Batsman | Runs | Balls faced | Dismissals | Average | Dismissal rate |
| Dominic Sibley | 111 | 294 | 5 | 22.2 | 58.8 |
| Zak Crawley | 41 | 95 | 4 | 10.2 | 23.75 |
| Rory Burns | 56 | 115 | 2 | 28 | 57.5 |
| Daniel Lawrence | 35 | 89 | 2 | 17.5 | 44.5 |
| Jos Buttler | 335 | 509 | 10 | 33.5 | 50.9 |
| Ben Stokes | 486 | 797 | 13 | 37.4 | 61.30769231 |
| Joe Root | 1320 | 2478 | 19 | 69.5 | 130.4210526 |
However, much to the relief of the visitors, as acknowledged by former England batsman Mark Butcher, Jadeja, one of the pivotal players in India's unbeaten run at home, is out with an injury and will miss the entire Test series.
"Embuldeniya is a quality spinner and our batters had problems facing him. England will be buoyed by Jadeja's absence. India possesses a world-class bowling attack but Jadeja adds a different dimension to it," Butcher had told Times of India on Saturday.
But India do have an unheralded option in Axar Patel, who has been named in the Test squad for the first two matches against England, and this very vulnerability factor of the English batting lineup, can hand the all-rounder his debut Test cap. Axar, who made his international debut in 2014 and has featured in 49 limited-over games for India, has picked 134 wickets in 68 first-class innings at 27.38, while also holding a batting average of 35.42 with one century and 13 fifties in 55 innings.
Will Axar Patel be handed his Test debut in Chennai opener?
How England can counter left-arm spin?
One of the key technique for a visiting batsman for surviving on Indian conditions is clinical footwork against spin. Alastair Cook and Kevin Peitersen had laid the blueprint through England's 2012 Test series win, and Root showed it last month through his twin centuries in Sri Lanka. The England skipper played the ball either well forward or well back which gave him translated into immense control, hence inducing lesser edges and misses.
Following the footsteps, Sibley played out of his crease more to Embuldeniya in his final innings of the tour than he played against other bowlers. CricViz data revealed that his interception point was 65 centimetres further down the pitch. He denied falling victim to the left-armer for the fourth time in the series and had gone on to score a half-century.
