Also Read: U-19 World Cup: Unbeaten India to clash with South Africa in semi-finals

Crawley shines again

Poll

Who will win the Punjab Elections?

BJP 32.86%

AAP 41.43%

INC 25.71%

Submit

View All In Poll

Like in the first innings, Zak Crawley was England’s driving force with a second successive 70-plus score, Ollie Pope began like a house on fire, Jonny Bairstow played his strokes freely, and Ben Foakes and Tom Hartley realised the highest stand of the innings, for the eighth wicket, to put the pitch in perspective. But whenever India hit a roadblock, a slice of inspiration came to their rescue.

India pacer Jasprit Bumrah with his Player of the Match trophy in Visakhapatnam yesterday

Skipper Rohit Sharma plucked a sensational catch at slip to pack off Pope off R Ashwin after Axar Patel had ended nightwatchman Rehan Ahmed’s entertaining cameo. Joe Root then played a crude hoick that ended up in point’s hands, giving Ashwin his 499th Test scalp, though he will wait at least until Rajkot to join his idol Anil Kumble in the 500-wicket club. Bumrah, who beat Crawley’s outside edge repeatedly in the morning, struck in the last over before lunch, trapping Jonny Bairstow in front, but it was Kuldeep Yadav’s dismissal of Crawley in the previous over that truly settled India’s nerves.

Kuldeep delivers

Quick on his feet and driving exceptionally down the ground, Crawley could single-handedly have muscled England home. Kuldeep, not brought on until the day’s 28th over, pushed him back with a slider and won a leg before decision on review after finding no joy from Marais Erasmus, who has the reputation of being a not-outer. For all their bravado, England had lost five for 127 in the morning session.

Not long after lunch, Shreyas Iyer produced a brilliant pick-up-and-throw on the run from mid-wicket to catch a dozy Ben Stokes short of his crease, the England skipper paying a heavy price for his lethargy. Iyer had a middling game with the bat but played his part in the win—remember his excellent catch in the first dig to halt the marauding Crawley?

Foakes and Hartley batted untroubled whilst adding 55, forcing Rohit to return to Bumrah. In his first over back, he deceived the former with a slower one, having him caught and bowled. Twenty minutes later, it was all over, the Player of the Match flattening Hartley’s middle-stump to finish with a match haul of nine for 91. Magnificent!

Brief scores
India 396 & 255 (S Gill 104, A Patel 45; T Hartley 4-77, R Ahmed 3-88, J Anderson 2-29) beat England 253 & 292 (Z Crawley 73, B Foakes 36, T Hartley 36; J Bumrah 3-46, R Ashwin 3-72) by 106 runs