Things won't get any easier for the hosts with the news that batter KL Rahul and all-World spinner Ravindra Jadeja will miss the Second Test, in addition to superstar shot-maker Virat Kohli. England, meanwhile, will have the same squad to select from plus the addition of off-spinner Shoaib Bashir who has now received a visa.
Despite the missing names, India (1/2) remain favourites to take victory in the Second Test at the ACA–VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam, beginning on Friday, February 2. England are the 5/2 outsiders with the draw a distant 9/1 - the weather looks set fair for all five days.
This will be just the third Test at the venue, with India winning by 246 runs against England in 2016 and by 203 runs against South Africa in 2019. The toss appears to be crucial with India batting first on both occasions scoring 502/7 and 455 to grasp control of each contest.
Opener Rohit Sharma could be the key for the hosts, he has scores of 176 and 127 in his two Test innings in Visakhapatnam – and boasts a 64.53 average in home conditions. Scores of 24 and 39 in the First Test show the batter is in decent nick, and a big score conversion is likely to come in the near future. Sharma hit 33 fours and 13 sixes in his one match at this venue.
It's likely Axar Patel will have to pick up the mantle with both bat and ball to compensate for the loss of Jadeja. The fellow left-arm spinner has similar attributes to India's premier tweaker and will have the platform to showcase that here. Patel averages 18.20 with the ball and 35.87 with the bat – that average boosted to 40.15 at home. He has notched three or more boundaries in six of his last eight at bats.
For England, number three Ollie Pope was the hero with a majestic second innings 196 as he took apart the much-renowned Indian bowling attack. It will be a case, however, of backing up that performance, as he only averages 35.00 in India and has just two scores of 50+ in his last 11 innings – albeit knocks of 205 and 196.
Joe Root is likely to come to the fore with the bat at some point. An all-rounder for this series as seemingly Ben Stokes' most reliable spin option, the visitors must hope his batting prowess showcases itself following scores of 29 and 2 in the First Test. Root maintains a 60+ average against India and scored 78 runs in the 2016 Test at the venue, including a 50.
Root could also be effective with the ball – he took 5-120 in the First Test and the Visakhapatnam pitch will no doubt cater to spin bowling once again. In two Tests at the venue, 47 wickets out of 71 have fallen to spin. Add Tom Hartley into the mix, who was impressive on debut with nine wickets, and England could plump for four spinners once again – Jack Leach, Rehan Ahmed and Bashir battling it out for two spots.
For India, Ravichandran Ashwin has match figures of 8-189 and 8-119 at the ACA–VDCA Cricket Stadium and is now the lead option for the hosts with Jadeja missing out. Ashwin took three wickets in both innings of the First Test and will likely bowl the majority of India's overs in partnership with Patel.
The bookies now have India to win the series 3-2 or 4-1 both priced at 10/3, with an England series victory priced at 11/5.
