IND Vs ENG, 4th Test: Under-Fire Rajat Patidar Gets Vikram Rathour Backing, India Unlikely To Tinker With Batting Order

Ranchi: India are unlikely to tinker with their batting line-up in the fourth Test against England which begins at the Jharkhand Sports Cricket Association (JSCA) ground from February 23. While all of them got runs in the third Test in Rajkot, Rajat Patidar’s spot in the side has been under question following his poor show in the game. Notably, Patidar made his Test debut in the series after senior batter KL Rahul was ruled out after the first game.

On a flat pitch, they yielded three hundreds (two from India and one from England) and a double century from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Patidar fell for long hops in both the innings. Although India have young Devdutt Padikkal in the bench, who is coming after a brilliant run in domestic cricket, the home side is believed to put their confidence on Patidar, according to batting coach Vikram Rathour.

“As far as having conversations with him (Patidar), yes, we have been having a lot of conversations with him but one thing he needs to understand is that this is how this game goes. He has been batting really well, he has scored a lot of runs to get into the team and doesn’t become a bad player from two matches,” Rathour, a former India international himself, told the media on Thursday.

Like the other first-timers in the team, Patidar too has come this far on the back of his numbers in domestic cricket. Rathour backed the right-hander and credited Patidar for all his hard work. “He is a very good player. He has really batted well in whatever cricket he has played. He has had a few tough games, a few awkward dismissals where the ball has stopped on him, this can happen, this is how the game goes.

“Absolutely no doubt that he is a good player and on his day he will come up with a very impactful innings,” he added. For the unknown, star batter Virat Kohli is missing from the series due to the birth of his second child, a baby boy named Akaay.

However, the only concern for India would be who replaces Jasprit Bumrah, who has been rested for the fourth Test due to workload management. In Bumrah’s absence Mohammed Siraj will be leading the pace attack. But who will accompany him? Will it be Mukesh Kumar or uncapped Akash Deep?

Mukesh played the second Test match in Visakhapatnam but didn’t fare much, taking just a wicket.