'Indian batting have some vulnerabilities', opines Steve Harmison

Former England bowler Steve Harmison has opined that Indian batting is not as intimidating as it was a few years back ahead of the upcoming Test series against India, starting from January 25. He also added that Joe Root and Ben Stokes should take responsibility to score runs for the English side.

Hyderabad: Former England pacer has cast doubts over the strength of India's batting unit ahead of England's upcoming Test series against India saying that the hosts' batting doesn't look as intimidating as it was a few years back.

England will play the first match of the five-match Test series against India on January 25 and they will be hoping to register a series win over the hosts. With two senior batters, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara missing from the lineup, India will play with an inexperienced side in the series. Reflecting on the Indian lineup ahead of the series, former England cricketer Steve Harmison has remarked that the Indian batting line-up have some vulnerabilities in their batting lineup.

"India will fancy their chances in their own environment, especially with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in their batting line-up. England, though, will feel that there are some vulnerabilities in that batting line-up. When I toured India, you had those big batters in the likes of Sehwag, Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman – all stellar players. I am not sure if it’s as intimidating as it was back in the day," he said to IANS.

"Shubman Gill is a very talented player and Yashasvi Jaiswal is a good player, so as Shreyas Iyer. But I don’t think there are more of established international players in red-ball as compared to white-ball set-up," he added. India will play without Mohammed Shami for the first two Tests and Harmison has stated that he will be a big miss for the Indian team.

"Both teams would be happy with their fast-bowling line-ups," he added. "Mohammed Shami is one of the best bowlers of the present time, whether it’s red-ball or white-ball cricket. He will be a big miss for India in the initial period. India are well-suited with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, but if Shami is available later, he will enter the equation."

Harmison also remarked that Ben Stokes and Joe Root will have the onus to score the most runs for the team in the series. "Ben Duckett is still finding his way, while Zak Crawley is still trying to find his way, though he’s an exciting talent," he continued. "So, Ben Stokes and Joe Root will have to shoulder the burden and the majority of pressure if England are to perform with the bat," he concluded.

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