ENGvIND second Test: HISTORY made as India conquer Edgbaston!
The young and flamboyant visiting Indian team levelled the series in style, with Captain Gill securing his first win as skipper emphatically.
Indian run-machines were complimented well by their bowling unit as a disciplined performance ensured a 336-run victory!
Here’s how the encounter unfolded at Edgbaston:
DAY 1 | Another Test, another Yashasvi-Shub show
YBJ, yet again, came out all guns blazing against his favourite opposition, recording his seventh 50+ score in as many Tests versus England. 👏
Moreover, he also set the record for the highest score by an Indian opening batter at Edgbaston, going past former opener Sudhir Naik’s 77 (1974).
Thereafter, Skipper Shubman Gill held the fort at one end to record an unbeaten 💯, as wickets kept falling at regular intervals.
📝 Stumps, Day 1: 🇮🇳 - 310/5 (85 overs)
Day 2 | Record-breaking day for Captain Gill
Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja took charge in the first session of Day 2. The duo notched a mammoth 203-run partnership, taking India to a commanding position at Lunch.
The second session, meanwhile, belonged to Captain Gill. He became the first Indian captain to score a Test double century in England.
Gill continued on his merry way to notch 269, the highest individual score by an Indian Test captain, a record previously held by Virat Kohli. It was also the highest score by an Asian captain in SENA countries. Matlab… ekdum chabuk maara bhai ne! 🫡
While India piled up 587 on the scoreboard, Akash Deep made a fantastic return to the Test team with a double-wicket maiden in the third over of the innings. Duckett and Pope - both gone for ducks!
The day well and truly belonged to Gill and Co!
📝 Stumps, Day 2: 🏴- 77/3 (20 overs)
Day 3 | Siraj’s six-for headlines a seesaw day
Mohammed Siraj took charge early on the third day, dismissing Joe Root and Ben Stokes on back-to-back deliveries to set England on the backfoot at 84/5.
Harry Brook and Jamie Smith, however, had other plans. A brilliant counter-attacking display produced a 303-run stand off 368 balls, with both batters crossing the 150-mark.
But the second new ball, once again, turned the tide in India’s favour. England lost their last five wickets for just 20 runs as Siraj picked his maiden five-wicket haul in Tests in England. Bole toh Miyan bhai on top!
A quickfire start from Jaiswal, followed by Rahul and Karun’s assurance, ensured India’s lead rose to 244 at stumps.
📝 Stumps, Day 3: 🇮🇳 - 64/1 (13 overs)
Day 4 | Captain Gill & pacers nudge India closer to victory
The Indian batters took control early, with opener KL Rahul bringing up a fluent fifty in the first session. After the dismissal of Karun Nair, captain Shubman Gill anchored the innings with poise, bringing up yet another century, as he cruised past Sunil Gavaskar’s 54-year-old record, becoming the highest Indian run-scorer in a single Test match thanks to his belligerent innings of 161.
This, along with power-packed half-centuries from Rishabh Pant & Ravindra Jadeja, propelled the Indian lead past 600 as they declared at 427/6.
With 608 runs to defend and the light fading, the Indian bowlers were relentless as Akash Deep & Mohammed Siraj dismissed the English openers early on. A Wonderball from Akash Deep late in the day got the better of Joe Root, leaving the visitors seven wickets away from a memorable maiden victory at Edgbaston in the longest format of the game.
📝 Stumps, Day 4: ENG - 72/3 (16 overs)
Day 5 | Bowlers seal a memorable win for India!
Rain may have delayed the start of play on Day 5, but Akash Deep wasted no time at all as his twin strikes of Pope & Brook pegged back the hosts early on in the first session, before Washington Sundar dismissed Ben Stokes right at the stroke of the Lunch break.
In the 2nd session, the Indian bowlers faced resistance in the form of Jamie Smith, whose 88-run innings was perhaps the only shining light for the hosts in the 4th innings, proved to be too little too late as he became Akash Deep’s 5th wicket of the innings.
Once he was gone, it was only a matter of time before the Indian attack dismissed the remaining English batters to secure a thumping 336-run win at Edgbaston, a venue where they hadn’t won in their last seven games!
Brief scores: India 587/10 (Shubman Gill 269, Shoaib Bashir 3/167) & 427/6 (Shubman Gill 161, Josh Tongue 2/56) beat England 407/10 (Jamie Smith 184, Mohd. Siraj 6/70) & 271/10 (Jamie Smith 88, Akash Deep 6/99) by 336 runs.