India would be hoping to repeat their performances, of 2014, at Lord’s – the venue where they will compete against England in the second Test match of the series. After losing a close contest in the first match, the Indian side under the captaincy of Virat Kohli would be looking forward to bring their campaign on track, quickly.

The Indian team, preferably the batting unit, performed poorly at Edgbaston, which cost them the first Test match. Of the total 436 runs scored by the Indian team in both the innings, 200 runs were scored by Virat Kohli alone! If you want to win a Test match abroad, such performances speak of imminent failures only.

Heading into the second match at Edgbaston, the Indian team should right the wrongs commit in the first Test match at Edgbaston. As the Indian team are all set to play against England at Lord’s, we take a look at four things the Indian team must do, to push their chances of a win, further!

1. Do Not DROP Any Fast Bowler

The first look of the Lord’s pitch was revealed some hours back, and it has the traditional green tinge on the top. The pitch has grass over it which will favour the fast bowlers early on. The high temperatures, predicted, will see the pitch erode as time goes by. It would, hence, assist the spinners, and also bring reverse swing into play later in the match.

(L-R) Mohammed Shami | Ishant Sharma | Umesh Yadav | (Photo Credits: Getty Images)

Hence, dropping any of the fast bowlers (Umesh Yadav is likely to face the axe) will be a foolish decision. Not to forget the advantage the pacers get due to the slope at one end on Lord’s pitch.

2. Pick Kuldeep Yadav, DROP Hardik Pandya!

Hardik Pandya looked hapless with his hit-the-deck bowling and underwhelming batting performance in the first Test match. Pandya's economy rate was over four runs per over in the first inning and no wicket in the first innings saw him end it with figures of 10-1-46-0. In the second innings, when the fast bowlers ran through the England batsman, Pandya didn’t even get to bowl an over.

(L-R) R Ashwin | Kuldeep Yadav | Hardik Pandya (Photo Credits: Getty Images)

While batting, the young all-rounder couldn’t contribute significantly as he scored 22 and 31 runs in both the innings. Given the success that R Ashwin got in the first match, and Kuldeep Yadav’s stupendous bowling and average batting talent are taken into consideration, India should drop Pandya in the second Test match. If the need arises, skipper Virat Kohli can bowl his dibbly-dobblies!

3. DROP Shikhar Dhawan, Slot KL Rahul As Opener

If not for his batting, India should surely drop Shikhar Dhawan for his reckless fielding in the slip cordon. His wry smile after the dropped catches only rubbed salt to India’s wounds. The left-handed opener got starts in both the innings but failed to convert those into a big score.

(L-R) Shikhar Dhawan | KL Rahul (Photo Credits: Getty Images)

More than the scarcity of runs, it was his habit of poking the ball outside off-stump, which created more half-chances for the English bowlers. Not to forget his poor shot selection in both the innings, Shikhar Dhawan was quite carefree during his stay at the crease. KL Rahul is in the form of his life and can be given a chance as an opener.

4. Include Cheteshwar PUJARA No Matter What

It was a brain-fade moment by India when Cheteshwar Pujara was dropped from the first XI. Arguably the best Indian Test batsman, currently, Pujara’s exclusion from the side raised many eyebrows on the first day of Edgbaston Test.

(L-R) Cheteshwar Pujara | R Ashwin | Lokesh Rahul (Photo Credits: IANS)

If anyone deserves to be dropped from the playing XI, then it is undoubtedly not Pujara. The right-handed batsman has opened the innings in the past and has played stupendous innings on number 3 in the past. In order to slot in KL Rahul, it should not be at the cost of Pujara. For the record, Pujara is a safer bet in the slip cordon than Shikhar Dhawan.

India lost the first test match by only 31 runs; however, given the circumstances of the Test match, the loss was a big one.

None of the Indian batsmen, other than Virat Kohli, performed well in the game. Also, the bowlers bowled their heart out in folding the English side for only 180 runs in the second inning. All their hard work was undone by the shoddy batting performances by the Indian batting line-up.

India is 1-0 down in the series and would be looking to swing the momentum in their favour at the earliest (during the second Test match at Lord’s). The last time the Indian team played here, in 2014, Ishant Sharma’s emphatic bowling and Ajinkya Rahane’s century ensured India won the match.

Come Thursday; the Indian team surely needs to make these changes in the line-up, to win the match and level the series. The second Test match between India and England will start from August 9. Stay tuned with us for the latest news updates about India vs England Test Series 2018 here!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 07, 2018 10:42 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).