KL Rahul will not be donning the big gloves during the England series.
Credit: PTI Photo
Hyderabad: India coach Rahul Dravid waited and waited and when the question on Bazball - England’s brand of attacking batting under new coach Brendon McCullum - finally came, he seemed prepared for it.
“They’ve had success playing like that. They’ve won in Pakistan, they’ve won in New Zealand, they’ve won at home, they really had an exciting series against Australia in the Ashes. They've been playing very good cricket but we know that it’s going to be a challenge for them in these conditions as well,” Dravid said during a press conference here on Tuesday.
“These are conditions we know very well, these are conditions where we have got experience in our attack. Everyone is looking forward to watching it. I’m looking forward to how our boys respond. When put under pressure, I’m sure they’ll respond positively.”
When asked if India will England a dose of their own medicine, Dravid said the team has naturally aggressive batters who will play the situation and not the opposition. “By nature most of our players are attacking in nature. I don't think we are going out there to try to be ultra-attacking. I think we look to play what's in front of us, what the situation demands, what it calls for.
Dravid also confirmed that KL Rahul will not be keeping this series with the management yet to decide on KS Bharat or hand a debut to 23-year-old Dhruv Jurel.
“No Rahul will not be playing as a wicketkeeper this series. I think we were clear about that from the selection itself. We had picked two other wicketkeepers, obviously Rahul did a fantastic job for us in South Africa and really played a big part in helping us draw that series. But considering it’s five Test matches, playing in these conditions, we felt we would go with another keeping option, considering the weather, considering the conditions. So selection toss up is between the two wicketkeepers we have.”