England’s leading spinner Graeme Swann has dimissed talks that Indian spinners would be a threat to the English batsmen in the upcoming four match Test series, says a report in Business Standard.
“England have managed to register just two wins in 22 Tests in the sub-continent, excluding matches against Bangladesh, and the reason could be largely attributed to the fact that their batsmen have struggled against high-quality spin bowling. England were whitewashed 0-3 by Pakistan in the Test series held at the United Arab Emirates earlier this year, before they could manage a draw in the two-match Test rubber against Sri Lanka in April,” says the report.
Swann said that the wickets in Dubai were different from typical sub-continent wickets.
"First of all, when we played in Dubai that was not really the subcontinent, that wicket was very unique in the sense that it was very skiddy and span as well,” he said.
"India's wickets are more traditional, more what people are used to, so I would be very surprised if that happened again," he added.
Meanwhile, England middle-order batsman Jonathan Trott isn’t worried about England being offered green tops for the practice matches, reports DNA.
“You’re never going to get what you want. We have our ways to prepare for the match day. And that’s what we are here for. The good thing is that we are here nine days ahead of the Test match, so we’re going to have a look at the wicket,” he said.
On the inputs he has received from Graham Gooch and coach Andy Flower, Trott said, “Not much. We basically speak to them and they reassert what our thoughts are. They sometimes give you tips. I can’t speak about what they tell others, but for me, it’s about foot movement and head position.”