Hyderabad, January 23

England fast bowler Mark Wood today said taming Rohit Sharma with judicious use of short-pitched balls will figure highly in his and the team’s plans to edge past a dominant-at-home India in the upcoming five-match Test series.

The first Test is scheduled to begin here from Thursday, and Wood said the nature of pitches, even if slow, could abet the strategy.

“Yeah, the conditions will be assessed once I am out there, and bumps (bouncers) are rarely bought out here. But the pitch sometimes can be two-paced and, if it is slow, it can help (bowlers) because the batters will be through with the shot,” Wood said.

“Someone like Rohit, I know how good he is on the short ball. That doesn’t necessarily mean that I wouldn’t bowl a bouncer. It just means that I’ll have to be really accurate with it and bowl at the right time,” he added.

Under their captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, England have been playing an aggressive brand of cricket, but Wood said the team is also willing to adapt to the conditions.

For him, it is all about cashing in on the opportunities to put the pressure back on the home side.

“I think we’ll still look to take the game on. I think at times it’s been smart though, you know, to consolidate it in and then when the chance comes to put the pressure back on (India),” he said.

Wood brushed aside concerns of England being under-prepared for this series and said their camp in Abu Dhabi helped the Three Lions tick several boxes.

“I think we’ve prepped really well in Abu Dhabi. We’ve made pitches, we’ve scuffed pitches up to make them spin, we’ve put sand down to make it spin, we’ve had flat pitches to practice simple and reverse swing. So, we’ve had all the facilities available in Abu Dhabi. It was also good to switch off there as well. We had a good team bonding session. So, we’ve come here fresh mentally and physically and ready to go,” he said.