MATCH REPORT
Follow Us"Their batsmen are hardly able to defend six balls in a row. We sensed that they don't have enough faith in the way they went about their business. That’s the one difference between the two sides I feel. We enjoy defending balls rather than thinking of it as I want to score runs now."
This is what Virat Kohli said after India sealed the series going 3-0 up in the fourth Test in Mumbai in 2016-17. Four years later, the description for the English batsmen need no alteration.
Test after Test, the get out of jail shot for England's batsmen continued to be various versions of the sweep. A shot that became more difficult as the Indian spinners varied their pace after the first Test. In this game, the England batsmen added another shot in their repertoire: coming down the track. But, it only resulted in bringing another mode of dismissal - stumping - into play. There was no improvement in the technique of playing the ball with softer hands or getting to the pitch and using areas in front of the wicket to score.
For the first three Tests, the problem was either in the pitch or in the defensive technique of the batsmen in the T20 era. Six out of England's eight batsmen are red-ball specialists. Most of them let their team down on this tour.
With century partnerships for the seventh and the eighth wicket, India piled on England's misery. A lead of 160 deflated the visitors. An implosion was on the cards and their batsmen continued with the expected script.
Neither Zak Crawley nor Jonny Bairstow got out to a sweep. A natural variation from Ravi Ashwin that did not turn accounted for Crawley whose outside edge carried to slip. Hard hands and unawareness of close-in fielders resulted in a golden duck for Bairstow. Caught at leg slip, Bairstow recorded duck(s) in five consecutive Tests against India. This is now a record for any player against an opponent.
With Ashwin among wickets, Axar Patel was not to fall behind. Dom Sibley fell in a similar style as Cheteshwar Pujara in the first Test. The ball hit the shin pads of the forward short leg and lobbed up for Rishabh Pant to grab it. Sibley averaged 5.33 on the sweep shot in the innings. Ben Stokes got bored defending and got a sweep awfully wrong to leg slip. England were crumbling at 30/4.
Joe Root and Ollie Pope hung around for a while. Root nailed a sweep or two, Pope thumped Ashwin over long-on. Unescapably, 65/4 became 65/6.
Fidgety throughout his stay, Pope jumped out of his crease against Axar in 25th over of the innings. He missed getting to the pitch by a foot or two. The ball turned and bounced on Pant, who completed an excellent stumping. Pant the batsman arrived in January. Pant the keeper was here in March.
In the third Test, Ashwin foxed Root with a loopy ball with lesser dip. Root committed the error of playing a full ball from the backfoot. This afternoon it was a ball with a slightly round-arm action that undid the English skipper. It was flatter, fuller and caught Root on the back-foot and in front of the wickets again.
Ben Foakes hung around for a while with Dan Lawrence after tea. But Axar completed a five-wicket haul soon with two quick wickets. No other Indian player has four five-fers in the first three Tests.
Lawrence was the biggest positive for England in this Test. Scoring 96 runs in two innings combined, he demonstrated the fruits that come with spending time at the crease. Not that a few turning balls didn't trouble him but he was positive with his feet movement and assured with shot selection. He was among the few, if not the only England batsman with other options than the sweep shot. In fact, none of his 96 runs in the Test came off a sweep shot. A mental note for England the next time they are here.
Lawrence's contribution only delayed the inevitable. After Lawrence completed his half-century, Ashwin got into the act soon. He dismissed Jack Leach and Lawrence in the same over to complete a five-wicket haul for himself.
An innings win makes it look like an easy Test for India. Things could have been different if not for the contributions from Rishabh Pant yesterday and Washington Sundar on both days. Post stumps yesterday till coming out to bat this morning, Sundar probably never left the bat. On the second day, Pant hogged the limelight after his first century on home soil. Sundar, ending the day at 60* went under the radar in spite of being the batsman with maximum control in the Test on a tricky wicket.
Coming out this morning, Sundar in the company of Axar deflated whatever was left in England's tank. With a 106-run stand, they stretched India's lead to a monumental 160. The plan was that of calculated aggression.
As was customary throughout the Test, Dom Bess was hit out of the attack soon. A six and a four by Sundar off overpitched deliveries resulted in Root taking the ball off Bess' hands.
Jack Leach's fate was no different as Axar, in particular, took a liking to the ball turning into him. Soon, the field spread as the only way England seemed to take a wicket was through over-aggression from the batsmen. The pair milked singles. The run-rate in the next eight overs dropped from around a daunting four to an impressive three. The life out of England’s hopes had been sucked out.
Sundar was on 96* and a first Test century looked imminent. Then came a collapse. Facing Root, Sundar played the last ball of the over to mid-on. Axar left his crease in a hurry and could not return back in time after Sundar refused the run. Out on 43, Axar missed a milestone himself.
Bowling the next over, Stokes caught Ishant Sharma plumb in front on the first ball. When Mohammed Siraj came to the crease, thoughts immediately diverted to the second Test in Chennai. Siraj stood at the crease with Ravi Ashwin then for 55 balls. After Ashwin reached his century, Siraj seemed happier than the centurion himself. This morning, Stokes found his off-stump on the third ball he faced. Today, Siraj seemed more crestfallen than Sundar himself.
The obsession with milestones apart, Pant's knock brought India to even footing to England. Those of Sundar and Axar put them in a position to win by an innings. With a 3-1 series win, India finish at the top of the World Test Championship table. They are through to the final at Lord’s in the summer.
After the first Test, there is very little that England can take back home. Their Test specialists have miles to go to compete in spin-friendly conditions. Their premier off-spinner needs a lengthy prescription of a confidence-booster. More importantly, if England want to compete in the Ashes later this year, they need to be comfortable to defend six balls in a row.
