Nasser Hussain, the former England captain, has cautioned India against preparing excessively spin-friendly pitches for the upcoming India vs England five-match Test series, starting on January 25. He expressed that such pitches could unintentionally benefit England's spinners. Hussain also advised England batters to be cautious with their Bazball approach when facing formidable Indian spinners like Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel.
Nasser Hussain, discussing the upcoming IND vs ENG Test series, suggested that if he were part of the Indian management, he would prefer good pitches that offer some assistance to spin. He believes that on such pitches, India's spinners and batters would likely outperform their English counterparts.
“If I am in the Indian management, I would ask for good pitches, that spin a bit. Because then their spinners and batters will out bat and out spin ours,” Nasser Hussain said in a conversation with Michael Atherton on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast.
‘They Won't Die Wondering’
Additionally, when discussing Bazball, Nasser Hussain expressed support for an ultra-attacking approach to overcome India's dominance on spin-friendly pitches at home. “If they ask for pitches that spin a lot then it becomes a bit of a lottery and brings England's spinners into the game. The way Bazball goes about its business, they won't die wondering,'' said Nasser Hussain.
Nasser Hussain went on to emphasise the high-risk nature of playing certain shots against India's spinners in challenging conditions. Specifically, he cautions against attempting big booming drives against Ravichandran Ashwin on a spinning track and highlights the dangers of facing deliveries angled in by Ravindra Jadeja and the variations of Axar Patel, suggesting that certain shots are best avoided regardless of the batting mindset.
“If Ashwin is bowling and it is spinning out of the rough, the big booming drive is still a high risk shot. Jadeja angling in and clipping leg, using your bat and pad together against Axar Patel. These are just no go areas, whatever the mindset your batting line-up has,” he said.
England's last Test series victory in India was in 2012-13, led by captain Alastair Cook, with notable contributions from spinners Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar leading to a significant 2-1 triumph. Nasser Hussain also mentioned that Indian fans are eagerly anticipating how their team will counter England's Bazball strategy in the upcoming series.
“There’s been a lot of talk about Indian cricket and there’s been a lot of talk about Bazball. My sense in the World Cup was that a lot of Indian fans are waiting to see how to put Bazball to bed.”