Former Indian skipper Rahul Dravid feels that India has a realistic chance of winning the upcoming Test series in England slated to be played in August-September. Dravid is the last Indian captain under whom India won a Test series in England way back in 2007.
India have won a few Tests here and there but a series victory has eluded them in the last 14 years. Despite a promising performance in 2018, they ended up on the losing side by a 1-4 margin. The former Indian skipper and the Director of the National Cricket Academy, Rahul Dravid feels that it will be a “tough contest overall and a great series to watch.
"I really do think India have a very good chance this time," Dravid was quoted as saying during a webinar organised by Live Aid India which is a trust to help people suffering from COVID-19.
"There's no question about their [England's] bowling. Whatever bowling attack England put on the park, especially their seam-bowling attack, is going to be fantastic. They have a lot of players to pick and choose from and that's going to be terrific,” he added.
There is no doubt about the fact that England have a top-class bowling line-up. However, their batting line-up looks brittle and was found out even in the series in 2018.
It was Sam Curran’s all-round heroics all through the series which helped England recover from precarious situations and eventually win the series 4-1. However, the top order failed on most occasions which clearly indicates that a lot of work needs to be done in the top half of their batting order.
"But if you look at their top six or top seven, you really think of one great batsman, a world-class batsman who is Joe Root. Obviously, Ben Stokes is another one, who is a good all-rounder, but for some reason [R] Ashwin seems to do well against him. And that should be an interesting contest. I know he's done well against him [Stokes] in India, but it'll still be an interesting subplot to the series,” Dravid said.
"But I just think India will be well-prepared, have the confidence from Australia, there's lot of belief in the squad. A couple of players have been to England a few times, there's a lot of experience in the batting order this time around, so this is probably our best chance, maybe say 3-2 to India,” the former Indian skipper further added.
Dravid also felt that not many teams get a chance to get acclimatised to the conditions for a full month. Following the ICC World Test Championship final, India will get a month’s time to get adjusted to the seaming conditions of England.
"After the WTC final, they're going to be in England for a whole month before the Test series starts. I don't think any team has had that kind of time to prepare for a Test series,” he added.
The Indian squad is slated to leave for England on 2nd June. They will first play against New Zealand in the Test Championship final. A few intra-squad games will follow before the start of the five-match Test series in England.
"I think India will play really well in England this time," Dravid said. "It's a great opportunity we've got. After the WTC final, they're going to be in England for a whole month before the Test series starts. I don't think any team has had that kind of time to prepare for a Test series as India will have this time so that surely should be a great advantage,” Dravid said.
In England, if there's one thing you've always got to respect, it's the conditions. It's slightly different from say an Australia or India. To some extent you sort of get the feeling [as batsmen] that you're never set. Even if you're set and you get a good start, batting on 30, 40, 50, things can change very quickly, the weather can change, the ball can swing even after it's 40-50 overs old,” Dravid further quipped.