James Anderson
Former England skipper Nasser Hussain has called for Stuart Broad's inclusion for the second Test against India, scheduled to start from Saturday in Chennai -- the same venue where Joe Root and Co handed the hosts a 227-run drubbing in the first match of the four-Test series.
After skipper Root's batting masterclass in the first innings, 38-year-old James Anderson grabbed the limelight by running through the gates of Shubman Gill and Ajinkya Rahane in the same over. In his outstanding spell of reverse swing bowling, Anderson castled both the right-handers to shift the momentum in his side's favour within four deliveries. He also removed dangerous Rishabh Pant as England went on to register a comprehensive victory, climbing to the top of World Test Championship (WTC) standings.
While Anderson plucked three, Jack Leach registered a four-fer to give England a commanding start in the four-match Test series. Root and Co need to win by a margin of three Tests, while India need a one-Test margin to qualify for the WTC final.
Though Anderson played a crucial role in wreaking havoc on the Indian batting unit on the final day of the first Test, Hussain feels Broad should play the second match, giving the veteran pacer a much-needed rest before the Day-Night Test in Ahmedabad.
“Anderson is 38, so Stuart Broad could come in for him as it is going to be a very similar pitch to the first Test and England might want to keep Anderson for the third Test. That is a day-night game in Ahmedabad and Anderson under lights could be a real handful. Broad is a pretty good replacement, I have to say,” Hussain wrote in his column for Sky Sports.
Hussain also backed Root's decision to not enforce the follow-on despite securing a 241-run first-innings lead, saying that the bowlers needed rest to be fresh to go again.
“There is always a 45-minute gap between what pundits, spectators, people off the field think the captain should be doing and what actually happens. If you are not going to enforce the follow-on, then you want to rest your bowlers. Root wanted to make sure they were fresh to go again,” Hussain further wrote.
