Duckett and Crawley dominate India on a day highlighted by Pant's courage
Duckett and Crawley dominate India on a day highlighted by Pant's courage
India vs England 4th Test: England Batters scored a 166-run opening partnership after bowled out India at 358. Debutant Anshul Kamboj & Ravindra Jadeja got England's opener.
At Old Trafford, Rishabh Pant stole the show in dramatic fashion. Despite having a serious foot injury bad enough that he needed to be wheeled off the field he shocked everyone by walking down the stairs, bat and gloves in hand, to take guard. It wasn’t about the score anymore; it was pure guts. Pant scored 54 runs off 75 balls, hitting his 90th six in Test cricket (equaling Sehwag’s record) and passing Alec Stewart’s record for most runs by a wicketkeeper in a Test series in England. Not bad for someone limping around in a moon boot.
India’s total of 358 seemed competitive, but England’s openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley had other plans. They built a powerful 166-run partnership, scoring at over 5 runs per over. What’s wild is that they weren’t trying to score quickly India’s bowlers just kept making mistakes.
Trying to copy England’s bowling tactics backfired. Debutant Anshul Kamboj leaked runs early. Mohammed Siraj tried pitching the ball fuller like Ben Stokes did but got punished for it. Stokes, however, was sharp taking 5 wickets and showing why he’s England’s game-changer with the ball. India finally broke through late in the day: Jadeja got Crawley out for 84, and Kamboj dismissed Duckett for 94.
The Dukes ball isn’t too dangerous when it’s fresh the shine needs to wear off before it swings properly. India normally manages this well but fell short in this game. Even when pressure built late in the day with new batters at the crease, England held firm and ended day two at 225 for 2, just 133 runs away from overtaking India.
Stokes kept shining with the ball, taking his career-best 16 wickets in the series. He bowled everything full, short, with movement and kept surprising Indian batters. He dismissed Shardul Thakur and newcomer Kamboj with excellent deliveries.
Duckett played cheeky shots and kept finding boundaries even from balls that weren’t poor. He reached fifty without hitting a single off-side boundary then broke that with a stylish punch through cover. Crawley, more patient at the other end, struggled early but grew into his innings. The pitch still had bounce and movement, but India’s bowling missed the mark too often.
Towards the end of the day, India showed some fight, but they’ll need a stronger effort on day three to stay in the game. Otherwise, the crowd’s cheeky chants mocking the bowlers will prove true: “They bowled to the left, they bowled to the right.