Test series in 2017

[Sin Hombre]

I think Karun Nair will not be selected for another test for awhile. Neither his batting nor his close-in fielding was convincing. He played this test only because Kohli was injured.

We need a #6 if we go with 4 bowlers which we will in some situations.

[prasen9]

Especially while playing abroad. Two spinners may be a useless luxury on some pitches. I would play Iyer before Karun. He is a good infielder. Do not know if he can catch at slips.

[prasen9]

Vijay is the only question-mark in the side -- prone to injury, and inconsistent with his batting. The selectors have been very harsh with Dhawan -- in picking Mukund over him. But he should be in the mix for selection as test opener.

Since it is abroad, Vijay will get the nod. But, if no capable 3rd opener emerges, Dhawan should go as the backup. He is never convincing but sometimes he scraps things out and makes runs. If you keep out Rahane and Kohli, Dhawan averages the best abroad next. Better than Rahul, Vijay, Pujara, and Mukund. He may be going downhill or his record may be an aberration given his technical deficiencies. But, when we tour abroad we will need fighters. And, people may have injuries. So, we will need credible backups. At home, we carried Mukund. But, abroad we need all guns firing to win. No free loaders.

[prasen9]

There is no doubt Patel would have given us more runs. But, thank god, we do not have to deal with tearing off our hair due to his missed stumpings/catches/clunky movement every innings. The selectors made the right call in keeping Saha and not Patel as the #1 keeper-bat. Abroad gets a bit more tricky. If the batting difference becomes more significant and the keeping gets easier, then we should look at some of the other options in Patel, Ojha, or Risabh. India should send a #2 keeper to England.

My team:

Openers: Rahul, Vijay, Dhawan

Middle Order: Pujara, Kohli, Rahane, Nair, Iyer

Pacers: Bhuvi, Shami, Umesh, Ishant, Shardul

Spinners: Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep

Keepers: Saha, Patel

I have started a Yagna to get god's blessings so that Rohit Sharma is not chosen. I can upgrade that to a maha-yajna if some of you chip in with some paisas in my go-fundme site. It's all for a great cause.

[prasen9]

I used to like Brad Hodge as a person. But, his cheapshots could not be further from the truth. Our players played test cricket with several injuries and are taking the IPL off. Rahul. Ashwin. And, maybe Vijay and Kohli. They played tests to the extent they could. Now, they are taking time off. Brad Hodge could not have been more wrong. Hats off to the team for having their priorities right. Although, I would not blame them if they had taken time off earlier. They have to attend to their injuries. Their body earns them their livelihood.