In the ICC rankings, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma remained firm at their respective fifth and sixth spot; Joe Root jumps to the second position
Our Bureau
London
Indian captain Virat Kohli is “super proud” of the team after visitors defeated England by 151 runs in the second Test at the Lord’s Cricket Ground on Monday to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
At the start of the day, England looked like the favourites to win the match. But Bumrah and Shami showed class with the bat, and then an epic bowling performance sealed the deal for the visitors. England battled hard, but their top order failures led to their downfall with the team being steamrolled for just 120 in the second innings.
“Super proud of the whole team, the way we stuck to our plans, being put in, our performance with the bat was outstanding. Pitch didn’t offer much of the first three days. But the way we played in the second innings, under pressure, from Jasprit and Shami was outstanding,” Virat Kohli said in the post-match presentation.
Talking about the last time India won at Lord’s, Kohli said: “Last time was special, Ishant bowled outstandingly. But this one, to get a result in 60 overs, is quite special. With someone like Siraj playing at Lord’s for the first time and bowling as he did was outstanding. We decided 60 was our mark, crucial breakthroughs were great for us and we carried on from there. The second half of the day, we thought we were on top and our fans got behind us. We feed off the energy of the crowd as well.”
India opening batsman KL Rahul said that the ninth wicket partnership between Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah in the second innings of the Lord’s Test against England really pumped up the side and it gave everyone energy.
At the start of the day, England looked like the favourites to win the match. But Bumrah and Shami showed class with the bat, and then an epic bowling performance sealed the deal for the visitors. England battled hard, but their top order failures led to their downfall with the team being steamrolled for just 120 in the second innings, handing visitors a win by 151 runs.
But Kohli said that the constant verbal duel between his side and England in the second Test gave extra motivation to his boys to finish the game off.
India and England provided an intense spectacle on day five as players from both sides engaged in verbals and in the end, it was Kohli’s team who emerged triumphant in an engaging match. “I was part of the winning Test match last time when I was a player under MS Dhoni. That was pretty special as well, Ishant bowled an outstanding spell. In that game, we put them under pressure on day four itself, ESPNcricinfo quoted Kohli as saying.
“When we were our most successful in Test cricket for a year and a half, our lower order was contributing big time and that’s something that we went away from a little bit when we play away from home. So that was one of our focuses, the batting coach has really worked hard with the boys and they are putting in the hard work,” he added.
India head coach Ravi Shastri on Tuesday said that winning a match at Lord’s Cricket Ground is very special. Shastri’s comments came as Virat Kohli-led India registered a famous 151-run over England in the second Test of the five-match series on Monday. “To win at @HomeOfCricket as a player and coach is something very special. Thanks a ton guys for making it happen. Enjoy the moment #TeamIndia,” tweeted Shastri.
Talking about the win, India opener Rohit Sharma tweeted: “Every single one of us wanted this win, you could see it, you could feel it and watching it play out was incredible.”
At the start of Day 5, England looked like the favourites to win the match. But Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami showed class with the bat, and then an epic bowling performance sealed the deal for the visitors.
England skipper Joe Root has denied using the short-ball tactic a bit too much in the second innings, but admitted that India jumped on to something that emotionally gave them an edge.
England was in the box seat in the second innings after reducing India to 209/8, but the hosts lost the plot when Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami came to the crease. England used the short ball a bit too much, and the Indian duo played sensibly to form an 89-run stand for the ninth wicket. “Fair play to Virat Kohli and his team. They jumped on to something that emotionally gave them an edge. I think a lot falls on my shoulders as captain,” he said. “Tactically I could have done things slightly differently,” cricket.com.au quoted Root as saying.
“The Shami and Bumrah partnership was the pivotal moment of the game, without question, and I don’t think I dealt with that well enough tactically. It put us in a difficult position. Looking back, I’d look at some of the field placings and the way that we bowled. We could have looked at maybe attacking the stumps a little bit more frequently and using the short ball as more of a surprise,” he added.
“We have to give them some credit. They scored in unusual areas and made it hard to set conventional fields and (we) were trying to manage taking wickets but not letting the game get away from us. But I would have taken a little bit more time and probably brought more modes of dismissal into the game sooner,” said Root.
Meanwhile, Virat Kohli and opening batsman Rohit Sharma remained firm at their respective fifth and sixth spot, but England captain Joe Root jumped two spots to claim the second position in the ICC men’s Test Player Rankings.
Root’s valiant 180 not out in the first innings of the Lord’s Test has taken him to within striking distance of top-ranked batter Kane Williamson in the Test rankings. The England captain, who started the series in fifth place and overtook Kohli after the first match against India, has risen another two slots to the second position after the second Test.
Root, a formerly top-ranked batter in the format, is on 893 rating points, only eight less than Kiwi skipper Williamson. Player of the Match KL Rahul is another batter to gain after helping India to a 151-run victory and a 1-0 lead in the five-Test series.
The 29-year-old opener, whose career-best is the eighth position he attained in November 2017, has gained 19 slots to reach 37th place with a knock of 129 in the first innings.
The bowlers to gain from the Lord’s Test include James Anderson, who has gained one spot and is sixth after a five-wicket haul in the first innings while England pacer Mark Wood and India’s Mohammad Siraj have made significant gains to reach 37th and 38th positions, respectively.
Wood has gained five slots with five wickets in the match while Siraj’s four wickets in each innings sees him gain 18 places
The latest weekly update, which includes performances in the first Test in Kingston, sees Pakistan captain Babar Azam move up two slots to eighth position among batters after scores of 30 and 55 while Faheem Ashraf and Fawad Alam have gained four slots each to reach 48th and 55th positions, respectively.
In a related development, England men’s head coach Chris Silverwood has named a 15-player squad for the third Test match against India starting at Emerald Headingley on Wednesday, August 25.
Yorkshire batsman Dawid Malan returned to the Test squad for the first time in three years. He last played Test cricket in August 2018 in England’s victory over India at Edgbaston. He will be looking to add to his 15 caps. Lancashire seamer Saqib Mahmood is included after impressing in all formats. He has yet to make his Test debut but will be aiming to add to his England credentials, having already been capped by the senior side in ODIs and IT20s.
The 24-year-old right-arm quick is familiar with the England set-up, having toured as a reserve during England’s winter Test programmes in Sri Lanka and India. In addition, he was part of the extended squads during last summer’s behind closed doors Test series against West Indies and Pakistan and was called up as back up in the build-up to the first Test at Lord’s.
