ENG VS IND 2018: Ravi Shastri Sounds Optimistic About Ishant Sharma Ahead of Test Series

Team India is all set to lock horns against a strong English side in a five-match Test series starting from 1^st August (Wednesday) at Edgbaston in Birmingham. They might well be the favourites ahead of the series. So much so, head coach Ravi Shastri is positive about lanky pacer Ishant Sharma.

However, it won’t be an easy job for the visitors to register a series victory in difficult conditions. India received a jolt ahead of the series when swing king Bhuvneshwar Kumar was ruled out of the first three Tests of the series.

Moreover, it was mainly due to a back injury which has curbed his instinctive moves.

During his absence, Ishant will be spearheading the Indian attack at least for the opening Test. He will be accompanied by speedster Umesh Yadav.

The duo will surely look to leave an impression. The conditions in England have always helped the fast bowlers.

In addition, it will be interesting to see how the Indian bowlers cope up with the pressure in the series.

Ishant hasn’t been part of the Indian limited-overs set up for a long time. Hence, he hasn’t played England in the tour before.

However, he has had a decent season with English county side Sussex in the English County Championship. The lanky speedster finished with 15 wickets at an impressive average of 23.06.

Ishant Sharma impressed during the only practice game India played:

He was also impressive during India’s only practice game against Essex. Ishant finished with figures of three for 59 in the first innings. He will surely look to make a great impact on the opening Test and the whole series.

Meanwhile, Ravi Shastri also sounded pretty confident of Ishant’s performance in the longest format of the game. He hailed the fast bowler for having the ability to get under the skin of batsmen.

“Ishant Sharma has done brilliantly in Sri Lanka. He did outstandingly in that Test match in Johannesburg where he bowled his heart out. He might not have taken a five-for, but he kept the bloody pressure on South Africa all the time. That is his role. He is experienced. He wants to be a spearhead,” ESPNCricinfo quoted Ravi Shastri as saying.

“Ishant has taken more wickets than anyone else amongst the fast bowlers. He will remember his seven-wicket haul at Lord’s in 2014, which played a big hand in the win. Those are the memories that will run through his mind when he gets the ball in hand,” the former all-round cricketer added.