Surrender at Lords

Yes, Joe Root won a match defining toss. Yes, England got the better of the conditions. Yes, Kohli and Shastri again got the 11 wrong. And yes, Kohli was playing hurt.

Yet, the scale and manner of India's defeat at Lords was astonishing. For a team that had set out to "try and win every match, every session, every ball", all that this Indian team managed to win at Lords was some pity.

There are three matches to go - some may say it is an opportunity to come back in the series and show some fight. However only time will tell if this team has the skill and (more important) resolve to do that.

Honestly, it is hard to see any positives from this Test Match.

The batting unit has become a disaster. Pujara - dropped in the first Test due to poor form - mysteriously regained his form and made it back into the side. He has the technique and is willing to do the hard yards, but his confidence is shaken as he can't be sure of his place in the side with Kohli at the helm. Clearly he is not a favourite of this team management who would like more attacking options. In this match he looked good until the captain ran him out and then the poor guy got a good delivery in the second innings. If I were Kohli, I would sit down with Pujara and assure him that his place in the Test side was assured for a while, and stop bothering him with this stupid talk of "playing with intent". For goodness' sake - LEAVE PUJARA ALONE!

Rahane is another one who seems to need a little bit of reassurance. I would give him one or two more Test matches. And ask Bangar to help Rahane leave the ball outside off stump. Let him only practice leaving the ball and playing straight down the track for the next 5 days of batting practice!

KL Rahul is a mystery. When he started playing international cricket many were comparing him with Rahul Dravid. However all this talk of playing with intent has made him an exciting white ball batsman, and a poor red ball batsman. I suppose we have to keep playing him and hope for the best.

Hope for the best is also a good strategy with Murali Vijay and Dinesh Kartik. They will hopefully turn their games around soon - frankly they didn't look very good at Lords.

For India to make a dent in this series, at least 2 of our batsmen other than Kohli have to come good - the best bet is Pujara, followed by Vijay and Rahane.

The bowling unit looked good at Edgbaston, but didn't do very well at Lords.. I can understand why Kohli brought in Kuldeep Yadav, but he should have replaced Pandya, not Umesh Yadav. Umesh Yadav was once a highly promising Test Match bowler - still is - and to prefer Pandya to Umesh Yadav in seaming conditions is not good selection. Pandya's long rope as a result of his 93 at Cape Town seems to be running out - not fast enough though.

Over to Nottingham!

Deja vu at Edgbaston - marks out of 10

A wise man once told me that one doesn't learn from past experience. One learns by reflecting on the past experience. Looks like some reflection is in order for Mssrs. Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri. 

The just concluded Edgbaston Test match felt very much like the Cape Town Test match from India's last high octane overseas Test series. Close match, India lost in the end, and the result probably hinged on some dodgy team selections. Here are my marks out of 10 for the Indian team.

9.5 - Virat Kohli, the man on the field - He doesn't get 10 only because he was troubled by Anderson, and was dropped early in the first innings. The transformation from 2014 was remarkable, and his batting heroics would have won India the match, had his evil twin - Kohli the captain and selector - not got in the way. His brilliant run out of Root in the first innings turned the innings on its head. Hats off to this man's grit, determination, work ethic, and desire. A true role model as an athlete.

9 - Ravi Ashwin - Frankly, the jury was out on Ashwin's ability to make an impact in non subcontinental conditions. He made a huge impact in both England innings. Just as Kohli appeared to be the most improved batsman in these conditions, Ashwin is clearly the most improved bowler.

8.5 - Ishant Sharma - Ishant bowled with fire and skill and didn't give away any easy runs. His 5 wickets in England's second innings presented India with a great chance to win. As usual he put a big price on his wicket - something our batsmen could learn from.

7 - Mohammad Shami - Looked laboured but generated some pace and bowled with some fire in the first innings. He has always been one bowler in this side who looks threatening most of the time. That has not changed. He could learn some grit from Ishant when he comes out to bat.

7 - Umesh Yadav - As always - pacy, erratic, and occasionally threatening. He was erratic and nervous in his first spell on the first morning, but recovered to take some wickets. His support to Kohli as a batsman was an added bonus.

5 - Hardik Pandya - Hardik continues to disappoint both as a bowler and batsman. Honestly, he doesn't look the part in the Test side. However his 93 in Cape Town has given him a long rope - hopefully it won't run out before he comes good. His second innings 31 came too late to have an impact.

4 - Murali Vijay - He looks the part as a Test batsman, perhaps the only one besides Kohli and Pujara with the technique and temperament for this format. However he gets out too often without a significant score, after having done the hard work of getting in.

4 - Dinesh Karthik - This Test match showed why he is not India's first choice keeper in Tests. His keeping was patchy. He was at least partially responsible for Dhawan's drop of Rashid at a crucial time. His batting has been very disappointing - Saha has shown more grit and staying power without the flair of Karthik.

3 - Virat Kohli, the captain - He doesn't seem to have learnt much from his experiences in South Africa. He picked Dhawan and Rohit at Cape Town and dropped Rahane. It turned out to be a disaster. Another set of team selection blunders here. The dropping of Pujara was a howler, and I don't know what else Dhawan has to do to demonstrate his problems against the moving ball. Picking Kuldeep instead of one of the seamers might have helped as well. And why does Ishant Sharma bat after Shami? Virat, please send a clear message to the team and promote guys who put some value on their wicket.

3 - K.L. Rahul - He is just too loose to be a good, consistent Test match player. Got out to an unplayable ball in the second innings, but his stroke in the first innings should embarrass him. Someone needs to sit him down and have a chat with him about showing some grit. However that is the coach's job, and we don't really have a coach to speak of.

2 - Ajinkya Rahane - It hurts to see Rahane bat the way he is batting at the moment. He has not been the same after being dropped in Cape Town. Perhaps the batsman with the greatest potential for Test cricket after Kohli and Pujara, but lets himself down with a poor temperament. If handled well, could still become a very impactful player for India. But again, that needs a proper coach.

2 - Shikar Dhawan - Great limited overs player, very good Test match player in the sub-continent, but does not have the technique to survive for long periods against the moving ball. He didn't look good in this Test match. His poor slip catching has not helped either. I would be surprised to see him in the eleven at Lords. But you never know with Kohli and Shastri.

1 - Ravi Shastri - I don't know where to start with this guy. What is his role? How is he preparing the team? How is he helping the captain with team selections? By his own admission he is a man-manager. The Indian team needs more, much more. For his own good, and for the good of the team, a headstrong guy like Kohli needs someone to challenge his ideas - Shastri is not the guy.