Former Indian pacer Ashish Nehra is of opinion that India will be facing more pressure going into the third Test match against South Africa at Cape Town. India won the first match of the 3-Test series conveniently by 113 runs in Centurion. On the contrary, South Africa chased 240 runs with seven wickets in hand in the second Test in Johannesburg. The series now hangs on to the result of the last Test that begins on 11th January.
Team India will receive a massive boost as Virat Kohli is set to return to the mix. The Indian captain didn’t feature in the Johannesburg Test due to an upper back spasm. His comeback is considered as one of the major positives for the tourists who are eyeing their first-ever series win in the Rainbow nation. However, Nehra feels that Dean Elgar and his men will be confident after tasting victory in the previous encounter.
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“You will always feel the pressure till the time you are playing international cricket. But if I have to choose one specific team, I would say India will be feeling more pressure. The fact that they were leading 1-0 and the way South Africa chased 240 in testing conditions, they have definitely put India under pressure,” Nehra told Cricbuzz ahead of the much-awaited 3rd Test.
The former left-arm pacer also backed Ishant Sharma’s selection as Siraj’s cover. The Hyderabad cricketer picked up a hamstring injury in the second Test and, as Kohli has confirmed, is ‘not match-ready’.
“When they have two players with experience of 50 and 100 Test matches, the captain and coach would be a bit relaxed. On the previous 2 pitches, there was excess bounce for tall fast bowlers. It will be interesting to see whom they select.
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“Ishant can give longer spells, which was acknowledged by Rahul Dravid as well; whereas Umesh can help with conventional out-swingers. So it will be a hard call to make,” Nehra said.
“If I am supposed to select one of the two, I have not seen them bowling in the nets recently. It is a very important factor for selection. But I would go with Ishant Sharma for his experience,” he added.
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