English cricket still doesn’t really understand spin - Graeme Swann

Former England spinner Graeme Swann thinks that the England team are not fully aware of spin bowling dynamics, particularly in the longest format. “English cricket still doesn’t really understand spin or captain it well — and that’s not a dig at Joe Root,” Swann was quoted as saying by Daily Mail.

Swann further explained how Joe Root's field placements for the spinners in the last Test series against Sri Lanka raised many eyebrows. Despite England emerging victorious in the recently-concluded series, the former cricketer believes that the team has a lot of boxes to tick when it comes to understanding the mechanism of spin bowling.

“One thing I will say, and Bumble (David Lloyd) mentioned this on Sky in the Sri Lanka series, is that I can’t understand having a deep cover to spinners like Joe did. It’s just a field placing for a dirty ball. By all means, play with a long-on Ir long-off or deep midwicket if you’re trying to tempt the batsman into something, but never ever have a deep cover.” - he said.

The four-match Test series between India and England also marks the return of cricket to the Indian shores after a long hiatus. The first Test is scheduled to begin from February 5 at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. 

After completing the mandated quarantine period, the Virat Kohli-led India began their outdoor training session on Monday. 

[Daily Mail input]