'We won't miss Virat and Rohit. I have faith in our young team.'
While many pundits reckon England will take the series in a close contest, veteran Mumbai cricket coach Vilas Godbole thinks otherwise.
"I am very positive about this Indian team. Everyone is asking 'Kya karega baccha log?', I say 'baccha log accha karega'. Most of them don't have the experience of playing in England. But it is advantageous for them because they have nothing to lose," Godbole tells Rediff's Norma Astrid Godinho.
With over 51 years of cricket coaching experience, the former secretary of the Mumbai Cricket Association and author of Cricket Coaching and Beyond, Godbole expects K L Rahul to be a vital cog for India in the series.
"His experience will be crucial. He is a determined cricketer and will 100 per cent rake up some big runs in England," said the 83 year old, who counts India's T20 skipper Suryakumar Yadav among his wards.
The last time India went to England, the series was squared 2-2 but we had Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma in the team then. Can this squad do one better in England this time?
We have a good team. Most of them don't have the experience of playing in England. But it is advantageous for them because they have nothing to lose. There is no pressure on them.
If Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were to be there... they were always under pressure to perform. As it is, both of them were struggling, if you see how they batted in Australia. So we won't miss them and I have faith in our young team.
I am very positive about this team. Everyone is asking 'Kya karega baccha log', I say 'baccha log accha karega'.
Our batters have better footwork than what the Australians showed in the recent World Test Championship Final last week.
Our team has a winning attitude. Look at Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan, they have a good, positive game. And our captain Shubman Gill and K L Rahul are mature cricketers.
Our bowling attack is also well-rounded, so I'm confident that even if they fumble early they have the wherewithal to fight back in the series.
India should just go with six batters, two all-rounders and three fast bowlers, that will be our ideal XI.
Have the selectors erred in snubbing Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane given their experience?
I don't think so.
If you see the Ranji performances they haven't done exceedingly well. Although Rahane has scored over 400 runs last Ranji season, India has not lost out by their exclusion.
This is a phase where we have to look ahead and plan for the future, and rightfully, the selectors have thought of the future.
KL Rahul is now the most experienced batter in the squad. On tours, he has a knack of starting off well and tapering as the series progresses. What do you make of that.
Rahul has a very good, compact technique. He is a determined cricketer and will 100 per cent rake up some big runs in England. His experience will come handy.
He is known to have a good record in England (597 runs at average of 34.11) and I can safely say that he will be crucial to India's batting and will make it count.
See, if you are a technically sound batter, no matter if you are going through a lean patch, you will come out of it. With that solid technique he can score against any attack.
Even in the IPL, he was playing a lot of orthodox cricket, which gave him rich dividends. He never played risky shots and rarely attempted a scoop or a reverse sweep. I think he was among top five scorers, purely because his approach is good.
Rishabh Pant has always been at his best in England. He is the vice-captain, how crucial will he be to India's chances?
I don't know why he has been made vice-captain. His keeping is also not up to the mark.
Winning one or two matches for India in five or seven years after playing over 40 Tests is not a great thing. He has scored 6 Test centuries, no doubt, but look what he did in Australia, he got out to foolish shots. I don't know why he is called indispensable.
Dhruv Jurel, in my opinion, is a better 'keeper and a much more dependable batter. I'm not against any cricketer because I have nothing to gain or lose.
Shreyas Iyer has been in top nick. Would his exclusion be a telling factor?
I don't think his exclusion is a big deal. Whom would you have dropped if he was picked?
Should the selectors have stuck with Sarfaraz Khan instead of bringing Abhimanyu Easwaran who was found wanting against pacers in the India's tour match in Australia?
I am very surprised about Sarfaraz's exclusion, he will be a great loss. I don't know the reasons why he is kept away. His exclusion is a mystery.
I think Sarfaraz should have been accommodated somewhere. In my opinion, the choice would have been between leaving out Sai Sudharsan and Easwaran. You can't drop Gill, Rahul, Jaiswal, and Karun Nair got a well-deserved call-up.
Sarfaraz has been scoring heavily everywhere. He has done well in his early Test career, see the way he scored that 150 against New Zealand.
Even now he batted very well for India A against England Lions in that first match (In the 1st unoffical Test, Sarfaraz scored 92). He should have been considered for the England tour. I'm afraid his career may go the Karun Nair way, who, after scoring 300 against England in a Test match was never picked, until now, 8-9 years later.
With Bumrah not expected to play all five Tests, how much of a load does that put on the bowling unit?
First of all, why presume he will not play 5 matches? I understand the selectors' anxiety over workload, his back injury... see in England you have the advantage, the ball swings, he won't have to put as much effort as he has to when bowling in India. He will get lots of assistance from the swing in the air.
Siraj is very good and we have a brilliant pace battery to back him. Arshdeep is a great pick, he should be in the Playing XI.
Among spinners I would pick Washington Sundar over Kuldeep Yadav because he brings variety.
Shardul Thakur has given a good account of himself lately, should he be automatic pick ahead of Nitish Reddy?
Shardul has always consistently given breakthroughs. He is a very intelligent cricketer and also has experience of playing in England. (On the tour to England in 2021, he took 8 wickets in three matches.)
He is also proven himself as a handy batter (he hit match-winning fifties in The Oval Test in 2021; overall, he scored 122 runs, including 2 half-centuries). I will definitely pick him over Nitish Reddy.
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