IND vs ENG: 2nd Test, Day 4 Talking Points – Bumrah, Ashwin outclass England to level series
India completed a clinical win over England as they beat them by 106 runs on Day 4 of the second Test at Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam. The Ben Stokes-led side came into the day with their score of 67/1 needing 332 runs to win having nine wickets.
However, they lost the plot in a hard-fought first session losing five wickets and scoring runs. They were eventually bowled out for 292 as India made a comeback in the five-match series levelling it 1-1.
Let’s take a look at the talking points from Day 4:
1. Zak Crawley continues his marvelous form
The England opener once again emerged as the top scorer for his side in the second innings as well with his brilliant knock of 76 (78) smashing 11 fours and two sixes. The right-handed batter looked determined to take his team over the line until he was trapped in front of the stumps by Kuldeep Yadav. Following his knock, Crawley is the third-highest run scorer of the series with 200 runs to his name from four innings at an average of 50.
2. Ravichandran Ashwin remains stranded on 499 Test scalps
After being taken to the cleaners in the first innings, the veteran spinner fought back in style in the second as he picked up three out of the first four wickets to fall for England. Ashwin got the big scalps of Ben Duckett (28 off 27), Ollie Pope (23 off 21), and Joe Root (16 off 10) to complete 499 wickets in his Test career. With just one wicket away from the historic landmark of 500, Ashwin was expecting to achieve the milestone on Day 4 itself. However, he remained stranded on 499 with other bowlers chipping in with wickets.
3. Jasprit Bumrah gets Player of the Match award for his 9-fer
After picking a six-wicket haul (6/45) in the first innings, Bumrah continued to pick wickets at crucial phases for India in the second innings as well. The speedster got the prized scalp of Jonny Bairstow (26 off 36) on the stroke of lunch as the batter was looking dangerous at the crease. He further ended the 55-run stand between Ben Foakes (36 off 69) and Tom Hartley (36 off 47) for the ninth wicket to calm the nerves in the Indian dressing room. Bumrah further destroyed the stumps of Hartley with finished with figures of 3/46 in the second innings and completed a 9-fer (9/91) in the match.
