By: Sandipan Bose
Prior to their arrival in India, England had practically nothing to lose after Bangladesh had the better of them. Still, Alastair Cook and his men started in a spirited fashion in Rajkot.
They managed to put the Indian batsmen under the mat in the second innings. Having said that, they couldn’t hold on to any level of consistency. They eventually lost the next three Test matches of the series.
But, you still have to give it to this team to keep coming back after a series of setbacks. More than reflecting on India’s power of strength in the series, it mirrored England’s lack of application in the second innings.
Read More: England Post Strong First Innings Total
Read More: KL Rahul, Parthiv Patel Off to Solid Start
Chennai Test, which is the last of the five-match series, is another case in point on how England played throughout the series. In other words, the visitors were simply brilliant and exploited the batting condition to their advantage.
The only downside was the dismissals of both the openers. England’s middle-order was right on the money. After Joe Root’s superb batting display, Moeen Munir Ali completed his four Test century of his career.
While Liam Dawson and Adil Rashid did what India’s Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Jayant Yadav have been doing all this while with the bat. It’s almost like paying back in the same coin.
But to do well in the Test match, England would have to come up with the same kind intensity in the second innings. Can England do that? With the bat, India are again off to a good start and both the openers.
KL Rahul and Parthiv Patel are looking good to make a mark. Whether England can force a change is now left to the bowlers, who also have equal responsibilities. We have to hang on for a while before saying where the 5th Test is going.
