Alastair Cook says India might have to leave out either Karun Nair or Sai Sudharsan in 2nd Test against England

Former England captain Sir Alastair Cook reckons India might have to leave out either Karun Nair or Sai Sudharsan in the second Test against England. Sudharsan, who was making his Test debut at Leeds, Headingley, returned with scores of 0 and 30.

Nair, on the other hand, managed scores of 0 and 20 after making a comeback to the national team for the first time since 2017.

Cook added that India should look to play Nitish Kumar Reddy in the playing XI after the all-rounder impressed on the Australian tour. Furthermore, the former England opener backed Kuldeep Yadav’s inclusion in the team.

“They might have to leave out either Karun Nair and Sai Sudharsan and play Nitish Kumar Reddy, who can bat and also bowl some phantom seamers, and then they can play Kuldeep Yadav as an extra spinner,” Cook wrote in his column in UK newspaper The Sunday Times. 

Meanwhile, India was poor with their DRS calls and KL Rahul was seen helping captain Shubman Gill adjust the field. 

“You could see lots of people out on the field making decisions and getting involved with DRS calls, and they got all of those wrong. You can read all the leadership books you like but until you are out there, there is no other feeling like it. I imagine he [Gill] would have felt shell-shocked,” he wrote.

Cook said having a more established captain might have helped India in the second innings when England were chasing 371.

“I think in India’s second innings a more established captain might have thought ‘we’re 340 ahead and five down, let’s put some pressure on England’. As it was they were bowled out with a lead of just over 370 anyway, but it might have helped their situation to have attacked a bit more.”

The second Test match between India and England will be played at Edgbaston, Birmingham from July 2nd onwards.