England vice-captain Ollie Pope feels the pitches will be a massive talking point in India but both the teams will be playing on the exact same surface.
England vice-captain Ollie Pope has made it clear that his team won’t be complaining if the pitches will turn from Day in during their five-match series against India, starting from January 25 in Hyderabad.
“In England we might leave more grass on the pitch to suit our amazing seamers, so it’s no surprise if India do the same to suit their spinners. And I actually think low-scoring Test matches are pretty amazing to watch,” he was quoted as saying by The Guardian.
“I saw a fair bit of South Africa versus India and it was great: guys scoring seriously tough runs and the ball flying through. The scores could be similar in India but if the pitches spin from ball one we won’t be complaining. It’s about finding a method to combat it.”
Ollie Pope says the pitches during the series will be a massive talking point in India but both the teams will be playing on the exact same surface.
“There will be a lot of outside noise,” he said.
“And pitches can be a massive talking point. But you have to remember the two teams are playing on the exact same wicket, so we just need to be as well equipped as we can.”
The England No 3 had a poor outing three years ago, when the team had travelled to India but says he has taken a cue from Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant on how to bat on the rank turners.
“We had some young guys on that tour. Myself, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes – it was our first India tour and we were probably taken by surprise when it turned from ball one [after the first Test]. But if we had read the pitch well enough and quickly enough,” he said.
“I look at the guys who were most successful, Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant, they didn’t rotate strike a huge amount. That’s tough to do on those pitches, you can’t just work spin around like in England. You need a really solid defence but also four and six options, to hit the spinners off their length.
“The danger ball last time was the one that went straight on – the ones that spun almost spun too much. It’s like in England when the [seaming] ball goes past your outside edge, you play it well with soft hands or miss it. It’s a case of being at peace with being beaten – that’s almost a win if you’re covering [lbw and bowled],” he said.