Ahead of the Test series against India, England announced a squad that comprised of two uncapped spinners, another spinner who was just 19 years old, and Jack Leach.
In the first Test in Hyderabad, debutant Tom Hartley and Rehan Ahmed, who had played just one Test prior to this series, formed England's three-pronged spin attack.
Hartley had a miserable debut in the 1st innings, conceding 131 runs at over five runs per over and picking up just two wickets. Even Ahmed picked up two wickets, but conceded 105 runs and turned out to be expensive.
Bet here on the India vs England Test series and other cricket matches!
Leach was the best bowler in terms of economy and control, even though he picked up just one wicket in the 1st innings of the first Test, conceding 63 runs in 26 overs.
The tables turned around in the 2nd innings, with England setting India a 230-run target which was always going to be an arduous task on Day 4 on a rank turner.
Hartley put the nightmares of the 1st innings past him to produce one of the best bowling figures by a bowler on debut, picking up seven wickets as he destroyed the Indian batting lineup.
As for India, the spin brothers of destruction - Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja - were joined by the crafty left-arm all-rounder Axar Patel.
Ashwin picked six wickets, three each in each innings, with his effectiveness diminishing as the game progressed and eventually swung in England's favour. Jadeja and Axar combined to pick up eight wickets.
However, the English spinners have done better in comparison to Indian spinners in India in the ongoing Test series. The Sporting News breaks down and analyses the numbers.
MORE: How many times has Ashwin gone wicketless in a Test innings at home?
How did India and England spinners fare in the 1st Test in Hyderabad?
England's Hartley was the best spinner in the first Test, picking up nine wickets. It was his seven-wicket haul in the 2nd innings which allowed the visitors to take a 1-0 lead in the series.
India spinners:
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Econ. |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | 50 | 5 | 194 | 6 | 3.88 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 52 | 5 | 219 | 5 | 4.21 |
| Axar Patel | 29 | 3 | 107 | 3 | 3.69 |
Total wickets: 14 @ 35.71 runs per wicket
England spinners:
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Econ. |
| Tom Hartley | 51.2 | 5 | 193 | 9 | 3.76 |
| Jack Leach | 36 | 7 | 96 | 2 | 2.67 |
| Rehan Ahmed | 30 | 4 | 138 | 2 | 4.60 |
| Joe Root | 48 | 8 | 120 | 5 | 2.50 |
Total wickets: 18 @ 30.39 runs per wicket
How did India and England spinners fare in the 2nd Test in Vizag?
In this game, the Indian spinners took a backseat as Jasprit Bumrah ran the show and spearheaded the attack, picking up nine wickets.
For England, Hartley picked up five wickets, Ahmed picked up six, and debutant Shoaib Bashir picked up four wickets.
India spinners:
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Econ. |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | 30 | 2 | 133 | 3 | 4.43 |
| Kuldeep Yadav | 32 | 1 | 131 | 4 | 4.09 |
| Axar Patel | 18 | 1 | 99 | 2 | 5.50 |
Total wickets: 9 @ 40.33 runs per wicket
England spinners:
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Econ. |
| Tom Hartley | 45 | 5 | 151 | 5 | 3.36 |
| Shoaib Bashir | 53 | 1 | 196 | 4 | 3.70 |
| Rehan Ahmed | 41.3 | 7 | 153 | 6 | 3.69 |
| Joe Root | 16 | 1 | 72 | 0 | 2.50 |
Total wickets: 15 @ 38.13 runs per wicket
India spinners vs England spinners: Who has the better economy rate?
Let's begin by taking a look at the economy rates of each bowler in this series.
| Bowler | Overs | Runs conceded | Economy rate |
| Jack Leach (ENG) | 36 | 96 | 2.67 |
| Joe Root (ENG) | 64 | 192 | 3.00 |
| Tom Hartley (ENG) | 96.2 | 344 | 3.57 |
| Shoaib Bashir (ENG) | 53 | 196 | 3.70 |
| Rehan Ahmed (ENG) | 71.3 | 291 | 4.06 |
| Ravichandran Ashwin (IND) | 80 | 327 | 4.09 |
| Kuldeep Yadav (IND) | 32 | 131 | 4.09 |
| Ravindra Jadeja (IND) | 52 | 219 | 4.21 |
| Axar Patel (IND) | 47 | 206 | 4.38 |
According to the table above, every single English spinner has been more economical than every other Indian spinner. It's a worrying trend for the hosts as it's hard to see the Indian spinners being outclassed in their own den by opposition spinners.
One can attribute to the Indian spinners being more expensive than English spinners to 'Bazball'. Indeed, the English batsmen have shown attacking intent right from the word go in the two games, and it's not something that will stop anytime soon.
In comparison, the Indian batsmen have played the Tests in a more traditional way, taking their time and using calculated risks to accelerate the scoring.
Still, to see three England spinners - who have the combined experience of six Test matches after the first two Tests - bowl better economically than behemoths like Ashwin and Jadeja speaks volumes about the struggle the Indian spinners are facing in conditions they are accustomed to bossing.
Overall comparison: India spinners vs England spinners
Overall, the English spinners have taken 33 wickets in this series as they have opted to use spinners more often than pacers.
In the first Test, Mark Wood was the only pace bowler in the lineup with the visitors opting to go with Leach, Hartley, and Ahmed as the three frontline spinners.
Joe Root has acted as the fourth spinner in the team, even though he is a part-time bowler. Even still, the English batsman has bowled 64 overs in this series, just 16 less than Ashwin.
As far as the average is concerned, the English spinners have picked wickets for lesser runs than their opponents.
It is reasonable to say that the English spinners have taken more wickets because they have bowled more overs. It's a fair point to bring up as the visiting spinners have bowled almost 90 overs more than Indian spinners.
Despite that fact, what also remains a fact is that Indian spinners have found it difficult to counter the Bazball approach, while the English spinners have caused all sorts of trouble to the Indian batsmen.
The only positive for India to take from this analysis is that Indian spinners have taken wickets at a quicker rate than their counterparts, even though the difference is negligible.
| Team | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Average | S.R. | Econ. | 5-fers |
| England | 320.5 | 38 | 1119 | 33 | 33.91 | 58.3 | 3.48 | 1 |
| India | 211 | 17 | 883 | 23 | 38.39 | 55.0 | 4.18 | 0 |
What next for India and England?
With the series level at 1-1, these two teams will lock horns in the third Test at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot on February 15.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Sporting News has editorial oversight for this content. Learn more >