IND vs BAN: Sanjay Manjrekar Explains Why India Must Play Three Spinners Against Bangladesh in Kanpur Test

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Former Indian cricketer-turned commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has explained why India need to play three spinners against Bangladesh in the second Test, which is scheduled to be held at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur from Friday (September 27).

India opted for three pacers - Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep, and two spinners - Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in the bygone Chennai Test, which the home side won by a huge margin on Sunday (September 22).

While all the five bolwers were among the wickets column at the Chepauk, Manjrekar has urged the Indian think tank to play spinner Kuldeep Yadav in the second Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur.

Manjrekar said that Kuldeep should have played in the first Test as the pitch would have offered immense support to spinners after the first one-and-a-half days.

Speaking on ESPNCricinfo, Manjrekar said, "I feel Kuldeep Yadav should not be dropped so easily. I believe that even if it was not a turner, India would have benefited from playing Kuldeep Yadav in Chennai because the seamers will get help for just one or one-and-a-half days on an Indian pitch.

"It starts supporting spinners after that and when you have a bowler like Kuldeep Yadav, you should not keep him out this easily. India should go with this approach in Kanpur."

The former Indian cricketer felt India can play two pacers in Siraj and Bumrah, alongside three proven spinners in Ashwin, Jadeja and Kuldeep in the Kanpur Test.

"Even if it's a green top and the sun is out, they should keep in mind that the green top will be just for the first few hours, and Siraj and Bumrah are enough for that. When you have three proven spinners, you should play all of them." Manjrekar added.

Kuldeep, who has played 12 Tests since his debut in 2017 and has taken 53 wickets, last played a Test for India against England in March this year. In that series, Kuldeep impressed in four matches he played, taking 19 wickets and scoring some valuable runs with the bat.

India also have Axar Patel in the squad, and could be tempted to pick the left-arm orthodox spin all-rounder, who had done well in the previous outing at the Green Park Stadium.

In India's last Test at Kanpur, Axar had claimed a five-wicket haul in the first innings against New Zealand in 2021, while Jadeja chipped in with four in the second innings. However, the match ended in a draw.

The spinners dominated the wickets column in that Test, accounting for 17 of 19 New Zealand batters dismissals. India had opted for a three spin and pace attack in their previous Test at the venue. They may take that route again later this week against Bangladesh.