India v England: Alastair Cook revels in Adil Rashid's improved form despite second Test defeat
Thursday 24 November 2016 16:18, UK
Adil Rashid's improved form offered captain Alastair Cook some consolation in the wake of England's 246-run defeat to India.
Rashid took six wickets in Visakhapatnam, to go with his seven-for in the first Test in Rajkot, though it couldn't prevent England from slipping to a 1-0 series deficit as they were bowled out for 158 on the final day.
"He has made huge strides," said Cook. "It is just so encouraging to see someone really fulfilling their potential.
"Obviously Rash can bowl - he's a really good bowler, in fact - but he's starting to believe it a bit more in Test cricket now.
"I think I'm right in saying that if he takes one more wicket, he'll have as many as Shane Warne ever got in a series in India. So he is doing some good stuff.
"I have been really impressed with the control he has shown. One thing we said after Bangladesh was that we didn't have that control from our spinners.
"He has taken that to heart, gone away and worked incredibly hard - Saqlain Mushtaq coming in as a coach has been really good for him, and all of the spinners, in fact.
"The full tosses and long-hops he had been bowling have disappeared, and that's huge credit to him."
Reflecting further on England's defeat in the second Test, Cook rued losing an important toss and said a couple of poor sessions cost them.
And looking ahead to the third Test in Mohali on Saturday, Cook wouldn't be drawn on whether Stuart Broad would be fit enough to play, but did praise his fast bowler's efforts in playing through the pain barrier to take 4-33 in India's second innings.
"It was a good toss for India to win," added Cook. "We all saw that it was the easiest to bat on the first day, there's no doubt about that.
"In India you need to score first-innings runs, and we needed at least parity in that first innings, so it was disappointing to lose five wickets late on day two, you can't afford to have a poor session like that.
"But from then on, we showed a lot of character and fight - Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes' partnership on the third morning, our efforts with the ball in the third innings, and then to bat 100 overs in the fourth.
"The guys have shown a lot of character so far on this tour, and we're not far away.
"Full credit to Broady, in particular, as I think his injury is a lot sorer than he showed everyone in that India second innings.
"Tearing a tendon in your toe doesn't sound particularly pleasant, so to bowl like he did was a huge credit to his resilience and his toughness. That's probably why he has played 100 Tests.
"We'll see how his injury settles over the next 24 hours. The conditions sometimes suit seamers in Mohali, but I doubt we're going to see too much grass on the pitch, if I'm honest.
"Hopefully we can go there and put India under some pressure; get the first of a couple of wins to get back in the series."
Live Test Cricket
Watch live coverage of the third Test between India and England from Mohali, on Sky Sports 2 from 3.30am on Saturday.
