IPL-winning head coach, Tom Moody, has offered some coaching lessons to the India National Cricket Team head coach, Gautam Gambhir, after the Edgbaston playing XI selection disaster.
Tom Moody stated that packing the playing XI with all-rounders is a move that will never work in Test cricket, as specialist players will always offer more.
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The second Test of the five-match series between the India National Cricket Team and the England National Cricket Team got underway on Wednesday, July 2, at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
India are eyeing their first-ever Test win at Edgbaston, and to achieve that, the Gautam Gambhir-led team management made some shocking decisions while selecting the playing XI.
The hosts made three changes to the playing XI after the loss by 5 wickets at Headingley in Leeds. India dropped Sai Sudharsan, who made his Test debut in the last game, all-rounder Shardul Thakur, and rested pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah to manage his workload.
Akash Deep was brought in as the replacement of Jasprit Bumrah, pipping Arshdeep Singh, while all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy and spinner Washington Sundar replaced Thakur and Sudharsan.
India’s selection for this Test is baffling - Tom Moody
India's playing XI for the Edgbaston Test consists of five specialist batters, three proper all-rounders, and three pacers. Gautam Gambhir loves having batting depth in the team, and this move has brought the team success in white-ball cricket, but the same can't be said about Test cricket.
Former Australia all-rounder Tom Moody has labelled India's playing XI selection as baffling and said that Gautam Gambhir's 'fixation' for all-rounders is a wrong move.
"India’s selection for this test is baffling. No Bumrah is one thing, but to only have 5 specialist batsmen is a gamble. The fixation on all-rounders who are there to offer depth with bat and ball has never worked. Specialists are always going to offer more over a test," Tom Moody wrote on X.
India’s selection for this test is baffling. No Bumrah is one thing, but to only have 5 specialist batsmen is a gamble. The fixation on all-rounders who are there to offer depth with bat and ball has never worked. Specialists are always going to offer more over a test. #ENGvIND
— Tom Moody (@TomMoodyCricket) July 2, 2025Dropping a youngster high on confidence doesn’t feel right - Subramanium Badrinath
Sai Sudharsan was one of the most talked about names heading into the Test series because of his red-hot form, and the youngster was given the crucial No.3 spot in the Test playing XI in Leeds, where he registered scores of 0 and 30.
However, his axing just after one match and promotion of Karun Nair to No.3 hasn't gone down well with former cricketer Subramanium Badrinath.
"Sai scored a crucial 30 and was involved in an important partnership in the second innings. Dropping a youngster high on confidence doesn’t feel right," Badrinath wrote on X.
Sai scored a crucial 30 and was involved in an important partnership in the second innings. dropping an youngster high on confidence doesn’t feel right #ENGvIND
— S.Badrinath (@s_badrinath) July 2, 2025Former India National Cricket Team player Dodda Ganesh was also shocked seeing India's playing XI and questioned the bowlers' ability to bag 20 wickets.
"How on earth are you going to pick 20 wickets with this bowling? #ENGvIND," the former India player stated.
How on earth are you going to pick 20 wickets with this bowling? #ENGvIND
— Dodda Ganesh | ದೊಡ್ಡ ಗಣೇಶ್ (@doddaganesha) July 2, 2025 Read More Details
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