England had started well in first 2 days - winning the toss, scoring 400 runs in the first innings but the selection of the team has surprised many of us. They have selected 4 seam bowlers & only 2 spinners in the wicket where in 2012, spinners took 19 wickets! Was it a gut feeling of the captain or the management?
This speaks volumes about the character of this Indian side. They know their strengths well & have executed their plans accordingly with grit & determination. Scoreboard pressure always play an important role in such wickets more. There was a bit of extra bounce & Indian batters had to adjust it quickly. And they did this with ease. England has felt that they are short of an extra spinner since when Vijay & Pujara had started playing after tea in the second day.
India didn't start their third day well as Pujara got out in the very second ball of the day. Then Kohli came in. And he played a gem of an innings. Kohli means business. And it seems he has spread the virus of aggression, grit, determination & winning mentality among his team members. After Vijay's spectacular innings, suddenly India lost 4 more quick wickets. And they were 40 runs behind when Jayant came into bat. That was the time when England missed the opportunity. Both Virat & Jayant played flamboyantly except couple of miss chances. And on 4th day, with 51 runs lead, India thought of getting whatever they can which will eventually help them to score less in the 4th innings. But as England had only 2 spinners, both Rashid & Moeen were tired of their long spells & they had started bowling loose balls more often which had helped Virat & Jayant to score runs in a faster pace. As a result, India got a lead of huge 231!! Virat scored his double ton- 3rd as a captain. Jayant scored his maiden test hundred. He wouldn't had been expected anything better than scoring this at Wankhede. It was a Sunday & there was a huge crowd to cheer them.
It was important for England to show positive intent to approach their innings now. But the debutant Keaton Jennings who scored his maiden 100 in the first day has got out in the very 2nd ball of the innings. Bhuvi took the only wicket among the fast bowlers of India in both the innings. Many of us thought that Cook & Root will show the determination to put a price on their wickets. They started well but Virat brought his favorite horses soon. Both Ashwin & Jadeja had started putting pressure from both the ends. And before tea, England lost their 3 important wickets with 49 runs on board.
During tea, many commentators had started saying that this test is going to finish within 4 days. But Root & Bairstow has played some aggressive shots & they didn't have the option either. They were not well prepared to defense those good balls. It was very clear that if India can get rid of 1 or 2 wickets, rest all will fall soon. And that happened. England were 180/4 & they finished their 2nd innings at 195!! Ashwin took all those last 6 wickets & got 12 in the match.
The difference was in the approach. After scoring 400 in the 1st innings & loosing the game by an iinigs & 36 runs is very rare. And that says that there is something wrong which England is doing at the moment. Yes, they didn't have the world class spinners like Ashwin & Jadeja but as a cricket lover, we would have been happy to see the English cricketers have put a price to their wickets.
In 2012, England spinners took 19 wickets & this time it is Indian spinners!! So 19 is an important number at Wankhede. And we have to speak about the crowd. BCCI has scheduled the games wisely. The holidays have allowed the passionate spectators to come to the ground to watch their favorite players play. It was a great visual treat & good for test cricket.
