‌IND vs ENG | Duckett domination amidst Ashwin’s 500th scalp as contest hangs in balance

02/16/2024

18052

A lower-order defiance, courtesy of Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Jasprit Bumrah helped India to go past the 400 mark in the first innings. Ben Duckett personified England’s BazBall approach for the nth time with a blazing ton amidst Ashwin’s 500th scalp to keep the contest in balance.

Brief Scores: IND: 445 [Rohit Sharma: 131 (196), Ravindra Jadeja: 112 (225); Mark Wood 4/114] trailed by England: 207/2 [Ben Duckett: 133* (118), Ollie Pope: 39 (55); R Ashwin: 1/37] for 238 runs

Alike the first day of the Test match, India lost a couple of wickets in the first hour of the morning session as nightwatchman Kuldeep Yadav and centurion Ravindra Jadeja were outdone by James Anderson and Joe Root respectively. With the score being 331/7, Ravichandran Ashwin and Dhruv Jurel stood tall against the English bowlers and capitalized on the sucker balls to end the session at 388/7 after 113 overs.

After a couple of dropped chances in the second session, the 77-run eighth-wicket partnership was fragmented as Anderson held on to a fumble to send Ashwin back to the pavilion. Jurel followed suit after four overs to pave the way for a Jasprit Bumrah quickfire cameo that saw some elegant stroke-making against the English spinners to propel India to a score of 445 at the end of the first innings. In reply, England initiated their innings by embracing the Bazball way of batting with Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett summing up 31 runs in six overs at the stroke of Tea.

The opening partnership for England marched at the rate of over six runs per over, courtesy of Ben Duckett’s 39-ball fifty before Crawley became Ashwin’s 500th Test scalp and the score read 89/1. While the southpaw continued his assault, Ollie Pope played second fiddle to glue a 93-run second wicket stand before a successful review from India offered Mohammad Siraj a comeback wicket. The occasional fall of wickets did not bother Ducket as the southpaw single-handedly destroyed the Indian bowlers’ economy with four out of the five conceding at an economy of over five. Eventually, Joe Root joined in on Duckett’s 118-ball 133* onslaught by concluding the day with a four and steering the English scoreboard to 207/2.

Wo lagega 😭😭

Rohit said " Jaldi to mangao ball yaar, hum log teen over piche hai, agar ye log all out hogaye na to hmlog ko wo lagega 😭😭”
— Kuljot Singh (@KuljotSingh_4_5)

From the big man!

500 Test wickets for a one-in-a-million bowler!

In AshWIN the SpinNER, there was always a WINNER. 500 wickets is a huge milestone in Test cricket. Congratulations, Champion!
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt)

Legend

From Chennai to the cricketing cosmos, 's journey to 500 Test wickets is a saga of grit, guile, and unrivaled skill. A monumental achievement that cements his legacy in the annals of cricketing history.

Bravo, Ashwin!
— DK (@DineshKarthik)

Phenomenal!

500 wkts in less than 100 Tests is a phenomenal achievement! Congratulations 🙌🏽👏🏽
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14)

Champion

A champion bowler who never stops to learn. Congratulations on this monumental achievement! Wonderful to see another Indian spinner joining the club.
— Anil Kumble (@anilkumble1074)

Masterclass

.'s journey to 500 Test wickets is a masterclass in bowling excellence with relentless hard work and extraordinary talent🤌🏾 One of the finest students of the game joins the elite group. Congratulations Ash!👏🏾
— Robin Aiyuda Uthappa (@robbieuthappa)

Special one

not only has 500 while bowling, but also 5 100s when batting.

No other bowler with 500 wickets has scored even 2 centuries.

Now, that's special.
— Ramesh Srivats (@rameshsrivats)

lol