Mumbai: England have played 145 out of their 555 home Tests at Lord’s. It’s remarkable that the aura surrounding Thomas Lord’s old cricket ground has endured 141 years into its existence as a Test venue.
Shubman Gill, after winning his first Test as India captain at Edgbaston, spoke about the “excitement and honour” he felt leading for the first time at Lord’s.
Gill is among half of India’s expected playing eleven that would not have stepped foot at the storied venue before. A walk through the Long Room where formally dressed members politely applaud the players and portraits of past greats adorn the wall can evoke a sense of occasion for Gill as he walks out to bat.
Most cricketers who have played at Lord’s swear by the pristine green outfield, pay homage to the hallowed turf and sloping ground, soak in the history and glorify wins. There are special places to play in each sport. Lord’s is that venue for Test cricket.
Gill too would have heard about the glory of Lord’s from his senior teammates. But he is less likely to feel intimidated as a young Indian captain. Gill belongs to the modern age of Indian cricket, a trendsetting generation where many are stars even before playing an international.
Gill was barely 18 when the spotlight fell on him with India’s U19 World Cup win. A starring role in a youth World Cup win isn’t a mere footnote; it often leads to a gainful IPL contract, adulation. Lifestyle interviews follow. Gill had experienced all of it before being picked for India in ODI cricket in 2019.
Besides, Gill has 585 reasons in this series – comfortably the leading run-scorer. And this team has plenty to look forward to, especially when one compares India’s past record at the venue. Although Kapil’s Devils shocked the cricket world in 1983 at the venue, the World Cup win had little spill over effect on India’s Test performances there. Except for the 1986 Test win, riding on Dilip Vengsarkar’s penchant to score big at Lord’s, from pre-Independence up to 2014, India won only once in 16 attempts. Even Sourav Ganguly’s defiance at the Lord’s balcony in 2002 after the Natwest Trophy win was only about white-ball ascendency.
Ishant Sharma’s screaming spell in the 2014 Test changed it all. That was one of India’s two wins in their last three Lord’s Tests. The 2021 win was even more epic. Jasprit Bumrah-Mohammed Shami’s merry batting for the last wicket in the second innings to deflate England’s confidence, captain Virat Kohli’s famous ’60 overs of hell’ speech in the huddle, Mohammed Siraj’s spiteful deliveries bowled with a scrambled seam all became part of Indian cricket folklore.
One of the reasons Siraj had the wits to deliver that around-the-wicket spell to nick off left-handers Moeen Ali and Sam Curran was because of his awareness of using the distinctive slope to his advantage. Intelligence passed on by coaches who were empowered by data. Ishant learnt it from Zaheer Khan. It was much harder for the previous generations in the absence of credible data, which made wins away from home much tougher.
It will be interesting to see what changes Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir make to give them the best chance to pull off another win. What’s certain is that the rested Jasprit Bumrah will play. With talk of a livelier pitch being prepared to assist England’s pacers, led by the returning Jofra Archer, Bumrah too will be licking his lips to have a go at the home batters.
The Lord’s honour board is one of the alluring preserves of the ground. Sachin Tendulkar never scored a Test hundred there, but Ajit Agarkar, did batting at No.8. Wearing his chief selector’s hat, he will help decide if the No.8 position still holds the same importance.
In the first Test at Leeds, India picked Shardul Thakur, who could neither score runs nor bowl useful spells. At Edgbaston, Washington Sundar proved his utility not just by playing his part in the 144-run stand with Gill for the seventh wicket, but he also took an important second innings wicket, that of Ben Stokes. India’s 2021 Test win defending 271 runs was set up by four genuine quicks.
Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said workload management will apply for other bowlers too.
“The workload management is not only for Bumrah. Every bowler’s fitness, issues are different. But I think there is enough rest in between Tests. After this match, there is a turnaround. But, Siraj is someone who bowls a lot. So, his workload management depends on how much load he has (carried) with red ball before coming into the series. The bowling coach and our S&C (strength and conditioning coach) will keep a track on that,” he told the media at Lord’s.