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Explainer: How will Rohit-Virat compete on the pitches of England? Know these things, you will have to pay special attention

By Samira Vishwas

IND vs ENG: The Indian team would like to forget the clean sweep in the T20 in England and perform well in the ODI. The series of 3 ODI matches between India and England will start from July 14. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will return to Team India through this series. Batting on the pitches and weather of England is considered one of the toughest challenges for any batsman. In such a situation, the role of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be very important on this pitch. To be successful in England, he will have to try to adapt to his technique, mental attitude and conditions.

The ball must be played close to the body

The ball swings and seams a lot on the pitches of England. There, there is more seam movement after swinging and hitting in the air. In such a situation, when the batsman takes his hands away from the body, a gap is created between the ball and the bat. The swinging ball can take advantage of this gap to bowl or LBW the batsman. Therefore, Rohit Sharma will have to keep his hands close to the body on the English pitches and play the ball straight with the bat. Virat Kohli should also use light hands to bring the ball under his control. Even if the ball hits the outer edge of the bat, it will not reach the slip fielders due to light playing.

Must leave the line of off-stump

England’s fast bowlers constantly bowl outside the off-stump. In such a situation, both Rohit and Virat will have to avoid tampering with these balls in the beginning. The best strategy against the bowlers would be that both of them leave such balls in the initial period. Virat Kohli’s frequent attempt to play cover drives on balls going outside the off-stump has been his weakness. He has been out several times in this affair. Therefore, he will have to avoid playing cover drives on the initial balls of his innings.

Correct use of crease and footwork

In England, batsmen have to change their footwork to deal with swing. Even before the ball swings, Virat Kohli often plays a little ahead of the crease. They can use the same technique in England also, so that they can play the ball even before it swings. Whereas Rohit Sharma has a lot of time to play the ball. He will have to take his feet completely out of the line of the ball and after taking the hit, he will have to play the shot only after understanding its direction.

Also read: Team India’s door is still open for Suryakumar Yadav, but the former captain will have to do this work.

Assessing Weather and Overcast Conditions

The weather of England changes anytime. The weather there is very unpredictable. As soon as the sun shines, the pitch becomes easy for batting, but as soon as it becomes cloudy, the ball starts swinging rapidly. Rohit Sharma will have to keep the weather conditions in mind while opening. If the sky is cloudy, he will have to bat very carefully in the first few overs. In such a situation, even if the pace of runs slows down a bit, wickets should not be lost. At the same time, if Virat Kohli is batting and suddenly the weather changes, then he will also have to immediately change his gear and play by adopting defensive techniques.

Control over short-pitches and pull shots

The extra bounce available on English pitches gives the batsmen the toughest test. Rohit Sharma’s pull shot is his biggest strength. Rohit has scored a lot of runs in limited overs cricket in England by taking advantage of this extra bounce on the basis of his pull shot, but this shot also becomes the reason for his dismissal many times. Rohit will have to keep in mind that instead of playing every short ball in the air, he should also play it by pressing it down. At the same time, instead of hooking the short balls, ducking the ball or punching it on the back foot would be a better option for Virat Kohli.

Balance of powerplay and aggressive batting

The first 10 overs of ODI cricket, which is the powerplay, decide the direction of the match. Rohit Sharma bats very aggressively while opening in T20 and ODI cricket. The team also expects him to lay the foundation of a big score. However, Rohit will have to be a little careful initially on the pitches of England. Along with scoring runs in the powerplay, he will also have to protect his wicket and avoid playing aggressive shots in case of moisture on the pitch. However, Rohit’s mentality has always been to give a fast start to the team, so that the work becomes easier for the upcoming batsmen. Now it remains to be seen how ‘Hitman’ starts in this ODI series against England.

Virat-Rohit will play ODI series in England after 4 years

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be seen playing ODI series on English soil after 4 years. Last time, Team India played a 3-match ODI series in England in the year 2022 and won it 2-1. Now Team India would like to reduce the wounds of the clean sweep in T20 by winning this series also. For this, the maximum responsibility is going to be on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

Also read: Team India’s door is still open for Suryakumar Yadav, but the former captain will have to do this work.

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