Shamik Chakrabarty
For the first time in the ongoing England-India series, a Test match started in proper English conditions. In Blighty, it’s usually sunset in November, sunrise in March and peak summer in July. But on Thursday, the London skies were grey with intermittent showers, and The Oval pitch had a tinge of green. Poor Kuldeep Yadav… For the first four matches, team balance had kept him out of the playing XI. In the series decider, conditions played a part in his omission. Kuldeep’s Test future now looks uncertain, but that’s a different story.
Shubman Gill lost his fifth straight toss. Should we blame it on toss presenter Ravi Shastri, as Michael Atherton jokingly suggested on Sky Sports? On a serious note, Ollie Pope, standing in for the injured Ben Stokes, sent India in after winning the toss. Irrespective of who is the captain, England love to bowl first — ‘Baz-tactic’ probably.
Even against a depleted English attack, the task was cut out for KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal. The latter, though, is usually a sitting duck when there is lateral movement, his expansive bat-swing being a reason. Here, he got out leg-before to Gus Atkinson, playing down the wrong line.
Rahul was looking solid until there was an error of judgment. The delivery from Chris Woakes was too close to cut, and the opener chopped it on. Sai Sudharsan missing out on a wide delivery from Josh Tongue in the previous over probably contributed to Rahul’s dismissal. In tough conditions, run-scoring opportunities are at a premium. And when a batter lets go a ‘hit-me’ ball, the pressure trickles down to his partner. Batting is about moving in partnerships, and with runs drying up, Rahul tried to be proactive. On air, Ricky Ponting was not impressed with Sai bungling a boundary-scoring opportunity.
At 38/2, India needed a partnership, and Gill was looking untroubled despite rain interruptions. Sai, too, was playing well at the other end — a straight drive was gorgeous — but Gill’s range allowed him to move at an impressive strike-rate. Forty-five runs were added for the third wicket before the India captain fell prey to a silly run-out. Gill misjudged it badly, for there was never a run in it. At Lord’s, Rishabh Pant’s run-out had cost India the Test. Will Gill’s run-out at The Oval cost India the series? Time will tell.
Meanwhile, after struggling to control the radar for quite a while, Tongue produced a jaffa to remove Sai. He bowled another peach to account for the in-form Ravindra Jadeja. India were 123/5, and it was over to Karun Nair, in his now-or-never game.
In a must-win Test, where it’s imperative to take 20 opposition wickets, India have strengthened their batting by bringing on Karun for Shardul Thakur. Obviously, Pant’s absence has played a part in the decision-making. Dhurv Jurel, Pant’s replacement, is a capable batter. but he is undercooked at this level. During his stay at crease Jurel was impressive before being undone by extra bounce. India slipped to 153/6.
After three average outings — he got starts but couldn’t convert them — Karun was dropped at Old Trafford. “Dear cricket, give me one more chance,” he had posted on X (formerly Twitter) back in 2022. On his last chance saloon, the 33-year-old is giving a good account of himself, remaining unbeaten on 52 at stumps on Day 1. In fact, on a day of top-order malfunction, Karun has kept India in the game. At the other end, Washington Sundar, fresh from his Old Trafford heroics, is looking confident. The two so far have added 51 runs for the seventh wicket to take India to 204/6.
Overall though, it was England’s day but Woakes’s shoulder injury towards the end of an elongated final session was a serious setback.
Brief scores: India 204/6 (Karun Nair 52 batting, Sai Sudharsan 38, Washington Sundar 19 batting; Gus Atkinson 2/31, Josh Tongue 2/47) vs England.
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