Speaking on ‘Match Centre Live’, JioHotstar expert Varun Aaron commented on England’s bowling attack:
“A bowler like Chris Woakes is really lacking pace. On a wicket like this, you need pace and line. He’s a very good bowler, no doubt, but he’s coming back from an injury and may not be bowling at his peak pace. Even though he’s hitting good areas, there’s just not enough behind it. Most of the English bowlers are hit-the-deck bowlers, which suits this wicket to an extent — but they’ve bowled far too short. In the first Test, Stokes bowled really well, but this time around, he hasn’t been as effective. So, if you look at the top three English bowlers, they just don’t seem suited to these conditions. On the other hand, Indian bowlers like Siraj and Akash Deep have been bowling at a healthy pace — consistently hitting the 140s — and have attacked the stumps throughout. Every time they’ve gone for the stumps, something has happened. They’ve hit the seam hard and used the crease really well. It’s five very different bowlers operating in very different ways.”
