After England handsomely won the first Test match of the series by 227 runs, things have gone awry for the visitors. They have been unable to cope well against India's spinners in the second Test in Chennai and the third in Ahmedabad, losing the two Test matches by 317 runs and 10 wickets respectively.
Although India themselves haven't exactly thrived against spin, England have fared worse, getting bowled out for low totals that in the long run have cost them the two games. India's spinners, on the other hand, have had a ball, quite literally, exposing England's vulnerability against spin on the challenging dry and turning decks.
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Axar Patel has had quite the start to his Test career. More than six years after he made his India debut, the left-arm spinner finally got his Test cap against England and immediately made an impact in the two Tests he's played so far. Axar picked up a five-wicket-haul in his maiden Test match in Chennai, becoming the sixth spinner and ninth overall bowler from India to claim a five-for on debut and followed it up with a match-haul of 11 wickets in Ahmedabad.
Axar and senior pro R Ashwin ran the England batsmen ragged with their spin. While Ashwin continued his fine form by taking seven wickets in the match and becoming the fourth Indian bowler to get to 400 Test wickets, Axar registered figures of 6/38 and 5/32, bowling England out for 112 and 81 in the two innings. Keeping his brilliant figures in mind, former England spinner Graeme Swann reckons Axar has done enough damage and it may not be a bad ploy for India to get Ravindra Jadeja back in the mix to get some match practice.
{{/usCountry}}Axar and senior pro R Ashwin ran the England batsmen ragged with their spin. While Ashwin continued his fine form by taking seven wickets in the match and becoming the fourth Indian bowler to get to 400 Test wickets, Axar registered figures of 6/38 and 5/32, bowling England out for 112 and 81 in the two innings. Keeping his brilliant figures in mind, former England spinner Graeme Swann reckons Axar has done enough damage and it may not be a bad ploy for India to get Ravindra Jadeja back in the mix to get some match practice.
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"I am a huge fan of Jadeja. Seeing how well Axar Patel has done, I think he should go on leave for a week and Jadeja can either come and play for England or can play for India because I think Axar Patel has done enough for now, we have seen enough of him, haven't we," Swann told former India captain Sunil Gavaskar during a discussion on Star Sports.
Jadeja has been out of action since the tour of Australia earlier this year. He copped a blow to his finger during the third Test in Sydney and was subsequently ruled out due owing to a dislocated thumb. There has been no update on Jadeja's recovery but given how the all-rounder was not included in India's T20I squad for the five matches against India, it may take a while for Jadeja to recover entirely.