By Trisha Ghosal in Leeds
It was bright, it was sunny, and it was supposed to help the bowlers early on. Ben Stokes won the toss and chose to bowl, hoping to make the most of the Headingley surface that showed signs of moisture on the eve of the Test. But as England bowling coach and series consultant Tim Southee admitted at the end of the day, the pitch settled quicker than expected, allowing India’s batters to take control.
On the decision after winning the toss
“We thought there’d be a bit in it this morning,” Southee said. “But credit to the Indian openers. They negotiated the first hour well. KL Rahul left well and (Yashasvi) Jaiswal played his hand too.”
Indian batters earn full credit
With India ending Day 1 at a commanding 359 for 3, Southee was full of praise for the way Shubman Gill, in his first match as Test captain, and Jaiswal batted. “They played a couple of great hands,” he acknowledged. “And Gill’s knock was especially impressive given the circumstances.”
Southee reiterated that the Indian side’s depth meant they were never short of quality. “They may not have played a lot of cricket coming in, but they’re certainly talented.”
Stokes the X-Factor
While England’s bowlers were largely neutralised by a flat pitch, it was captain Stokes who stood out. Returning to Test bowling, he was England’s most successful bowler on the day, with figures of 2 for 43 in 16 overs. Southee called him a “real X-Factor” and praised his hunger to keep bowling.
“He’s in great shape, bowling as well as I’ve seen him in a while. He was eager, threatening, and broke through when we needed it.”
New ball hope and Day 2 plans
Despite the rough start, Southee remained hopeful. “We’ve still got a reasonably new ball. Hopefully, we can make early inroads tomorrow morning and get ourselves back into the game.”
When asked about the decision to bowl first and the potential logic of giving bowlers the best shot at 20 wickets, Southee was candid: “You try to make the best call based on the surface and conditions. Sometimes you get it right, sometimes you don’t.”
England’s belief in the long game
Having been part of several remarkable fourth-innings efforts, England’s camp isn’t short on belief. Southee closed on a note of Test-match optimism: “There’s a lot of belief in this side. We’ve done amazing things before. It’s Day 1. There’s a long way to go.”
Day 2 awaits, with India firmly on top, and England banking on skill, bounce-back ability, and a fresher Dukes ball to tilt things their way.
Also Read: ENG vs IND, Leeds Test: Pant ends Day 1 on 65*, surpasses 3000 Test runs