Chennai: Axar Patel (5/60) and Ravichandran Ashwin (3/53) predictably completed the annihilation of clueless England batsmen. The two spinners brought India back in contention for the World Test Championship final. Both Axar Patel and Ashwin were well-supported by Kuldeep Yadav (2/25) as India levelled the four-Test series with a crushing 317-run victory in the second game here Tuesday.
Debutant Patel made full use of favourable conditions to bag five wickets on his Test debut and finished with seven wickets in the game. Ashwin had a match-haul of eight wickets, not to forget his classy hundred with the bat. They demolished England for a paltry 164 on the fourth day in pursuit of an impossible target of 482. It was India’s biggest win over the tourists in terms of runs.
India have now risen to second in the WTC standings. They need at least win one more game and draw another to make the cut for the final in June.
“The conditions were challenging for both sides, but we showed more application with the bat. We didn’t panic out there looking at the turn and bounce. We showed grit, got into the game and scored 600 runs in the game,” an ecstatic Kohli said in the post-match presentation.
Critics, mostly from the English side, had panned the pitch. However, two hundreds and three fifties by the home team batsmen showed that it was all about understanding of conditions brilliant application. It was demonstrated by the likes of Rohit Sharma, Ashwin, Kohli, Rishabh Pant and debutant Patel.
From the visitors’ own ranks, No. 9 Moeen Ali went on a six-hitting spree in his 18-ball 43. He showed the ones above him in the order, how it is done on a dust bowl.
“Credit to India, they outplayed us in all three departments. It has been an education for us. You could come up with conditions like these. We have to learn from this and find a way to score runs,” said Kohli’s opposite number Joe Root.
Opener Rohit should come in for special mention considering the start that India needed after first Test disaster. Rohit set the tone and then it was a Test match that Ashwin will remember forever.
Young Pant, whose glovework at times invites unnecessary scrutiny, pulled off a lovely stumping to get rid of Dan Lawrence (26)) off Ashwin. The off-spinner flighted one to entice Lawrence out of the crease. The ball turned and travelled between the batsman’s legs. Pant was unsighted for the better part as he moved down the leg side. However, he maintained his balance, collected the ball and effected a smart stumping.
Ben Stokes (8) has been famous pulling off Houdini acts. However, Tuesday, no such magic was in store against two top-quality slow bowling operators. Stokes, for close to an hour, scratched around as both Axar and Ashwin kept a tight leash on him.
Coming round the wicket, Ashwin got one to turn away as Stokes, with a forward defensive prod, tried to keep the ball down. But all he managed was an inside edge onto the pads. Kohli, who had placed himself at wide second slip, gleefully caught the loopy gift.
Root, as he waged a lonely battle, got a reprieve when his reverse sweep off Kuldeep, while batting on 32, was dropped by Mohammed Siraj stationed at deep point.
Axar showed brilliant discipline by landing 90 per cent of his deliveries on the rough and beating the right-handers at will. He finally got his reward when Ollie Pope (12) top edged while going for a slog sweep and was caught by Ishant Sharma at deep mid-wicket.
Ben Foakes, after a memorable match behind the stumps, also didn’t stay long. Kuldeep, the third spinner, had something to cheer as another mis-timed sweep shot landed in the palms of the mid-wicket.
Root’s (33, 92 balls) two hours and 13-minute scrap finally ended when Axar got a classical left-arm spinner’s dismissal. He landed one successfully on the spot and as the England captain pushed forward, the ball bounced enough and took an edge before flying into slips.
On a track, where a five-for was there for the taking, Axar removed Olly Stone to get his maiden five-for in his debut Test match. He emulated his spin bowling partner Ashwin who did the feat nearly a decade ago. Leg-spinner Narendra Hirwani achieved the same feat around 33 years back.
Moeen (43, 18b) with no worries in the world entertained himself with three successive sixes. It was more of an audition for interested IPL franchises.
Fittingly it was another smart Pant stumping off Kuldeep that brought curtains down on a highly satisfactory outing for Kohli and company.
Brief scores: India 329 and 286; England 134 and 164 (Moeen Ali 43, Joe Root 33, Axar Patel 5/60, Ravichandran Ashwin 3/53, Kuldeep Yadav 2/25). India won by 317 runs.