Not a vicious turner,going by Uppals track record

The story doing the rounds at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium was that the curator had prepared two pitches for this Test and had left it to Indias think tank to choose one. So after their first training session at the stadium on Thursday,the Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni,some say it was Sachin Tendulkar,pointed his finger at the dustier of the two. Its a no-brainer why India opted for the one that would turn more. But the puzzling point what was the need to prepare two. If given a choice between turner and square turner,it was always going to be the latter.

Facts

Moving from hearsay to facts now. The last Test here was won by India but all the Ranji Trophy games played here have resulted in a draws. Traditionally,Hyderabad offers a conventional track. The kind that helps the pacers initially but gradually the ball starts taking turn. Even on the final two days,the turn isnt too sharp or totally unpredictable.

Horses for the course

Going purely by the past of the central square here are the selection issues the two teams will be dealing with in the coming days.

India: This is a kind of surface where India will need Pragyan Ojha in the playing XI. The left-arm spinner doesnt overtly depend on the pitch to take wickets. Besides,this happens to be his home ground. Ravindra Jadeja with his fast and flat trajectory will find it tough to beat the batsman. The others who can be expected to struggle on a typical Hyderabad track are pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh. The surface can be too slow for their liking.

Australia: The pacers can expect more purchase here as compared to Chennai. In the last Test played at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium,New Zealands pacers Trent Bolt and Tim Southee,were a handful for the Indian batsmen. Left-arm pacer Mitchell Johnson with his bounce,pace and movement can create problems for the Indian batsmen. Left-arm spinner Xavier Doherty,who gives an extra tweak,could be a better option on this surface.

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