Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has called for significant changes to India’s bowling lineup after their first Test defeat against England at Headingley, suggesting the inclusion of left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav in place of Shardul Thakur to address the bowling inadequacies that were exposed during England’s successful chase of 371 runs.While Jasprit Bumrah secured a five-wicket haul in the first innings, the remaining pace bowlers Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Shardul Thakur struggled to make an impact as England clinched victory with five wickets remaining.“Kuldeep Yadav has to come back. I’m sorry to say, but Shardul Thakur has to go out,” Manjrekar said on ‘Match Centre Live’.“That is one change India will have to make. As for Nitish Kumar Reddy – I backed him for the first Test purely based on what he did in Australia. It’s an unpopular choice, because when he comes in, the balance does get affected a bit. He won’t quite bowl like a fourth seamer, so India need to take a hard call: even in English conditions, they must go with quality bowlers.”“If that means playing two spinners, so be it. Pick your best bowlers, irrespective of the conditions. You don’t have the luxury of someone like Mohammed Shami available, or the full-strength pace battery, so I’d go one seamer short and bring Kuldeep into the XI. He has to play.”Manjrekar emphasized that modern English conditions are increasingly favorable for spin bowling due to drier summers.
“Let’s also acknowledge that English summers these days are largely dry – thanks to global warming, perhaps – and that does open the door for spin. In a way, it’s time to reintroduce the idea of India playing spin in England. Ben Stokes has already changed the narrative with common-sense, aggressive cricket. India need to embrace the same clarity.”“There was a time when India would play three spinners no matter what — whether in New Zealand or England. If Kuldeep is in your squad, play him. Don’t go with seamers just because you’re playing in England. I’d drop one seamer and bring in Kuldeep Yadav.”
‘Expect more’ from Jadeja
“It’s not fair to be overly critical of younger players like Prasidh Krishna – there are obvious areas for improvement. But I am going to be critical of Ravindra Jadeja. This was a final-day pitch with rough patches for him to exploit. And while there were a couple of chances, we have to expect more from someone of his experience.”
Poll
Should Kuldeep Yadav replace Shardul Thakur in the bowling lineup?
“I felt he didn’t use the rough nearly enough — especially against Ben Duckett. Against Ben Stokes, yes, he did make an effort. But it was only much later in Duckett’s innings that Jadeja started using the rough properly. When you’re dealing with experienced bowlers and seasoned batters, you expect a higher level of tactical awareness. Somewhere, I felt Jadeja was disappointing. The seamers had no help from the surface — but Jadeja at least had something in the pitch working in his favour.“
