After India's heartbreak in the first Test match at Edgbaston, off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin believes that there is no need for concern and that the team has the mettle to make a comeback and win the series.
"I've been on tour since 2011, and during that time this team has got a lot of positive vibes in terms of believing that we can pull it off from any stage because we have done it in the past," he said after the match.
'We'll have to pull off something special'
Ashwin, who was one of the stars in the match with seven wickets, said that the team believes they can pull off a series win at some stage.
"On our past three or four away tours, we've managed to pull off some incredible victories, and probably to win a Test series in England - and that too a five Test match series - we'll have to pull off something special at some stage," he quipped.
Needing 194 runs to seal the first Test, India fell short by 31 runs on the fourth morning to hand the hosts a victory in a match which was a great advert for Test cricket.
Captain Virat Kohli held the key for India, but once he was dismissed for 51 by Ben Stokes, India's chances were thrown out of the window. The rest of the batting has to now pull up their socks and give a good account of themselves if they harbour hopes of being competitive in the series.
"Our shot selection could have been better. We definitely need to apply ourselves better with the bat," Kohli said after the match.
However, the Indian bowlers were on the money and both the seamers and spinners posed plenty of questions to the hosts and picked up 20 wickets, which is a great boost leading into the series.
Both teams have plenty of questions to answer when they travel to Lord's. The series seems to be wide open and when the second Test begins on August 9, the theatre will unravel again.
