Indian coach John Wright on Thursday confirmed Hemang Badani will openthe innings along with Shiv Sunder Das in the second Test againstZimbabwe starting at Harare tomorrow

14-Jun-2001Indian coach John Wright on Thursday confirmed Hemang Badani will openthe innings along with Shiv Sunder Das in the second Test againstZimbabwe starting at Harare tomorrow.”Badani will open the batting. He wants to…” Wright said, adding theTamil Nadu left-hander was given a choice to bat either as an openeror at number seven and he opted to open.”Looking at the wicket and other factors, I think it is a goodopportunity for him. It will not be held against him as he isbasically a middle order batsman. It is his first opportunity in thisposition,” he said.Badani, who will make his Test debut tomorrow, has never opened theinnings in his first class career but he possesses a sound techniqueand impressed when he was given the opportunity in a three-day matchagainst the CFX Academy where he scored an attractive 35 beforeretiring.Badani gets his first Test in place of his state mate SadagoppanRamesh who has not recovered from a back injury he sustained whilefielding in the first Test.Wright said Badani had it in him to make a transition from a middleorder batsman to an opener and expressed confidence that the stylishleft-hander would make the most of the opportunity offered to him.”In my opinion, he has the technique to open the batting. Some peoplecan make the transition and some can’t. There is this psychology ofthe whole position. But Hemang wants to do it and I think he would doa good job. He will put in his 100 per cent,” Wright said. “He is aquality player. It is a good opportunity for him.”A person must want to open the batting. If he is going out in themiddle at an unlikely position and is not comfortable, then it is notgoing to work. But we are in a position where we do not have an extraspecialist opener on this tour. If something has to happen, this isthe best option.”Wright said fast bowler Ashish Nehra had corrected his run up andwould feature in the second Test. “In the two nets we had here, therewas absolutely no problem with Nehra. He didn’t tread on to the dangerline. We are very confident that the problem will not arise again.”Nehra was stopped from bowling in Zimbabwe’s second innings in thefirst Test after he was repeatedly found to be damaging the pitch inhis follow-through. There were some doubts over his participation inthe second Test but the bowler corrected his run-up and the processwas smooth. “It didn’t require much work. It was marginal in the firstplace. He is aware of all sorts of things about his bowling. He isalso a very quick learner,” Wright said.The coach was diplomatic in his comment on Nehra being dropped for thetriangular series starting on June 23 with West Indies as the thirdteam. “Well, he is not in the squad. But he has been our best bowler.He has been a standout performer and I think everyone is aware of it.”Asked whether the announcement of the one-day squad ahead of thesecond Test would affect the performance of those who have beendropped, Wright said, “Players have to be professional enough to takethe disappointment in their stride and still keep performing.”Captain Sourav Ganguly said India would once again go in with threemedium-pacers and a spinner. “The three seamers have done pretty welland the wicket will help them. I don’t think the pitch will turn much.Two spinners will be a luxury. There is so much less grass on thewicket this time than the one we played here in 1998. It will be agood wicket to bat on,” he said.Ganguly said he was not perturbed about his own form. “If you look atit, I have failed in only two Test matches in Mumbai and Chennai. HereI got a rough decision. I just have to back myself.” He said the teamhad chalked out a strategy to contain Andy Flower who is having aprolific run against the Indians. “We must bowl in the right channelsto get him out. He is due for a failure now.”