The selection committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), headed by former cricketer Sandeep Patil, announced the squad for Team India for the forthcoming Test series against Sri Lanka. They made only a slight change to the team that went to Bangladesh. Karn Sharma has been replaced by Amit Mishra.
Mishra made his way back in to the Indian Test squad after four years. In the one-off Test match against Bangladesh, Harbhajan Singh made his comeback. Now for the tour of Sri Lanka, it is Mishra's turn and he is beaming with confidence.
"No doubt I have more experience now. I have more experience in assessing how to bowl, how the partnership is going, how the wicket is and the style of batsmen. My bowling has improved along those lines and my thinking has also improved. I feel I have made the improvements I needed to make," Mishra told reporters at the end of the second day's play between India A and Australia A at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Thursday.
Mishra also said that the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka will not be easy. "It will be a tough tour," he said. "The Sri Lankan players, whoever is there, are good against spin. And the pitches are good for batting."
Recently, Pakistan's leggie Yasir Shah had troubled Sri Lankan batsmen throughout the tour and that might well be the reason for Mishra's addition to the squad. But Mishra is unaltered with Yasir's performance.
"See, someone [else] performing or not performing doesn't boost my confidence. I have always been confident about my bowling. I am bowling well and performing well and I get confidence from that. But it is important to go there and adapt quickly to the conditions," Mishra said.
