Kolkata: We have Test cricket and then we have a sensory overload like this. For a good hour or so, one had to pinch and check if India and England were playing the same format at the Kennington Oval. Deciding that there was no point respecting the conditions or India’s bowling, Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley plundered 92 runs in 12.5 overs at Bazball pace till Duckett was undone by his urge to improvise. That sparked a scintillating comeback as Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna combined, taking four wickets each after Akash Deep provided the first breakthrough.
A timely and quick fifty from Harry Brook helped England eke out a valuable 23-run lead that India shaved off in under five overs before adding more. It wasn’t a phase without a few moments of scare though. KL Rahul was dismissed early, edging Josh Tongue to Joe Root at slip. Yashasvi Jaiswal – motoring on 51 off 49 balls – was nearly caught at slip by Gus Atkinson before Liam Dawson dropped a dolly at long leg.
Later, Sai Sudharsan was shockingly dropped by Crawley at third slip. Sudharsan wasn’t as lucky the next time as Atkinson trapped him leg before. At stumps, India were 75/2, sitting on a 52-run lead with eight wickets in hand.
Once again this is shaping to be a one-innings shootout but considering that Chris Woakes has been ruled out of the rest of the game, England could feel the pressure if India keep bowling like they did on Friday. Beautifully poised and very difficult to call with still three days left, this Test could build up to be one for the ages.
Few could have predicted such a whirlwind day where 15 wickets fell, all to pacers, and runs were a premium barring that one hour. Atkinson claimed 5/33 after returning to the side as India folded from 204/6 pretty swiftly. Karun Nair’s vigil was broken by Josh Tongue, who made the ball nip in sharply and hit him on the back leg. Washington Sundar fell five deliveries later, trying to pull Atkinson over deep square leg but failing to clear Jamie Overton well inside the boundary.
England’s openers came out with a purpose, clobbering 92 off just 77 deliveries, forcing India to alter lengths, spread their fields and slowly slip into panic mode. Duckett was the chief orchestrator of the counterattack after being hit in the groin by Akash. A close leg-before call, an edge dropping short of gully and Duckett was done defending.
A reverse ramp over the slip cordon saw Duckett pocketing a six off Akash before he carted him for three boundaries in the next over. Another ramped six off Siraj over the wicketkeeper’s head started sounding the alarm bells, but Akash was cheeky enough to chase Duckett with a ball he couldn’t scoop away.
Crawley took over from where Duckett left, going after Akash but with more copybook strokes that pierced India’s field easily. He took 42 balls to raise his fifty — 48 of the runs coming in boundaries — and continued the demolition job till Prasidh dropped one slightly short and he sliced it to Ravindra Jadeja at midwicket. This is where the momentum started shifting in India’s favour. Joe Root was the perfect man to anchor England’s consolidation phase but he was riled by Prasidh soon after coming on, leaving the hosts an edgy lot.
Enter Siraj now, with a bouquet of full, swinging in-dippers that England had no answer to. Pope was pinned back with one that stayed a bit low and struck him on the back leg. To Root, Siraj was a notch quicker with a scrambled seam that beat his defence comprehensively. Most unplayable though was the ball to Jacob Bethel, Siraj nearly yorking him, as he trapped him in front of middle stump to send England spiralling to 195/5.
Brook came to England’s rescue with his brand of aggressive batting till he was slowed down by the loss of wickets at the other end. Till Siraj cleaned him up, Brook added an admirable 52 for the last five wickets, helping England gain a slim lead.
The conditions hadn’t changed much apart from the pitch easing up a bit by the time India returned to bat. But so stifling were the lines bowled by England pacers that scoring wasn’t easy.
Jaiswal, however, took it upon himself to battle through the initial overs. He straight drove Atkinson before the pacer came back with an angled-in delivery that Jaiswal edged through slip. A ferocious cut followed, and then another majestic drive, both off Atkinson for boundaries. Brook dropping him didn’t soften Jaiswal as he kept trying to improvise, even ramping Jamie Overton for six. By then he had been dropped once more, this time Dawson losing the ball in the backdrop of the crowd.
