By Scyld Berry, at the Oval
England’s optimal strategy today is to focus solely on batting out for a draw in the fourth Test, go to Old Trafford at 1-1, and aim to have enough tall pace bowlers left to exploit the vulnerability – or the closest they come to vulnerability – of India’s batsmen against bounce to win this gripping series.
England’s best tactic for batting through the final day at the Oval is a rare one. India’s most dangerous weapon is Ravi Jadeja bowling over the wicket and into the rough against England’s left-handed batsmen. Rory Burns has already seen the ball kicking and spitting, and at Jadeja’s pace the left-hander has minimal time to get his bat and gloves out of the way.
So when Burns, Dawid Malan or Moeen Ali are at the crease, England’s right-handed batsmen take all of Jadeja’s bowling, and never run a single that would expose their left-handed partner to India’s main threat. It will take enormous concentration to overrule the conditioned reflex to run after a scoring shot, and it is completely at variance with today’s fashion of…
