ENG vs IND: 5th Test – Pant, Jadeja headline the opening day
The first day of the rescheduled Test match between the home side England and India was an enthralling affair. The Three Lions were dominating the first half with their disciplined bowling. However, the duo of Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja made a statement with the bat and showed that the visitors are here to clinch the Test series. On that note, let us take a look at some talking points after Day 1 of England vs India.
3. Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli’s waste starts
Two senior Indian batters including Cheteshwar Pujara and former skipper Virat Kohli were in decent touch before the start of the rescheduled Test match against England. While Pujara scored heavily during his County Championship stint, Kohli also scored a decent fifty during the practice game against Leicestershire. Both batters also got a good decent start to their innings but failed to capitalize with the bat.
Talking about Pujara, the right-handed batter took his time to settle down and did a decent job in seeing out the new ball. However, the senior batter was scalped by James Anderson after scoring 13 off 43 balls. Former Indian skipper Kohli also disappointed his fans as the stalwart got out after scoring just 11 runs. He was scalped by pacer Matty Potts as the modern-day great went back to the pavilion disappointed.
2. James Anderson took three wickets
Taking the new ball, veteran pacer James Anderson was all over the visitors batting line-up after scalping three crucial wickets for his side. The right-arm pacer scalped the wickets of both openers including Shubman Gill and Pujara with his classic outswingers. Anderson opted for a different line of attack against Shreyas Iyer as he strangled the batter with a short-length delivery. However, the senior pacer did not receive much support from the other end.
1. Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja brought out their A-game to rescue India
The visitors were looking down and out after losing half of their side for just 98 runs. However, the two left-handed batters Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja had some other plans for the Three Lions. The duo took their time on the wicket but punished each and every English bowler after getting set. Pant scored an excellent hundred which also forced the quiet Indian head coach Rahul Dravid to stand up on his feet and applaud the batter. However, the left-handed batter got out after scoring magnificent 146 runs against the home team.
Similarly, Jadeja also played his role really well and scored an excellent fifty. To note, both Pant and Jadeja were under the scanner for not having good form. While several cricket experts and pundits raised questions on Pant’s batting style and form, questions were also raised on Jadeja’s selection in the playing XI instead of veteran Ravichandran Ashwin. However, both Indian players have silenced their critics in some style.
