Pune, India

After losing to New Zealand in the first Test in Bengaluru by eight wickets, the Indian Team gears up for the next game in Pune, for which the hosts have asked to prepare a spin web. Per the latest reports, the Pune pitch, loaded with black soil, will have a lower bounce, suggesting a flatter and slower surface for the second game.

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India got all out on 46 in the first innings of the first Test—their lowest Test total at home and third-lowest overall—with the Zealand seamers wreaking havoc on the seam-friendly surface with overcast overhead conditions assisting. Though India returned stronger in the second innings, hitting 462, the Kiwi seamers returned with 17 of the 20 wickets in two outings.

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On the other hand, the Indian seamers returned with only five wickets, with the spinners picking up wickets in bulk. Considering a loss in the first Test affected their PCT on the WTC standings for the current cycle, if not their position, the hosts know they need to buckle up and aim for their last series win of this home season.

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The latest reports suggest that the remaining two matches in Pune and Mumbai will be spin-friendly, with veteran pair Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin coming to the party. However, the only difference between the pitches at both venues will be the bounce, with Wankhede’s red soil to offer a tad extra.

Meanwhile, the BCCI had planned a similar surface for the first Test, but the overhead conditions in Bengaluru changed the whole scenario.

What’s the team combination?

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The Indian Team might make a few changes to their playing XI for the second Test. The hosts might bring Akash Deep for Mohammed Siraj or add another all-rounder in either Axar Patel or Washington Sundar for Siraj or out-of-form KL Rahul.

Besides, India will have to take a call on Shubman Gill, who missed the first Test with a stiff neck and was replaced by Sarfaraz Khan, who slammed his maiden hundred in the second innings.

Meanwhile, it is the third Test at this venue. The first was the famous Pune game between India and Australia, with the Australians winning by 333 runs. The left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe returned with 12 wickets in that game. The next match, however, took place two years later against South Africa, which India won, thanks to a double hundred by Virat Kohli.

(With inputs from agencies)