Ranchi: The pitches might not have been entirely in their favour, but the Indian pacers’ ability to strike at vital situations has made a sea of difference, batter Shubman Gill reckoned.
The four spinners — R Ashwin (11), Ravindra Jadeja (12), Kuldeep Yadav (8) and Axar Patel (5) — together have taken 36 wickets across three matches as compared to 22 by pacers so far.
So, the numbers might be favouring the tweakers, but Gill said the pacemen bowled well according to the conditions to keep their side ahead.
“Wherever we play in India, wickets help spinners a bit. Ash bhai (R Ashwin) and Jaddu bhai (Ravindra Jadeja) will take wickets anyway, but the way our fast bowlers have bowled, it has made the difference in this series,” said Gill.
However, India will be without Jasprit Bumrah as the premier pacer has been given rest. He has so far taken 17 wickets from three Tests to lead the chart for India.
But Gill said the other Indian pacers have enough experience in these conditions to make an impact, citing the example of Mohammed Siraj’s four-wicket haul at Rajkot.
“If a player in the class of Boom bhai is not playing, any team will miss him, especially since he leads our fast-bowling attack. But, Siraj also took four wickets in crucial times in the last match,” he said.
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