England vs India 2018, first Test: Hits and Misses

In their 1st test of the long English summer, the Indians were asked to bowl. Ashwin dismissed Cook with an absolute peach but England dominated the first day until Kohli’s brilliance brought about the dismissal of Root.

Then, Shami and Ashwin made short work of the lower order and England were dismissed for 286.

India began well with Dhawan and Vijay stitching together a decent partnership but a familiar collapse ensued after that with Kohli being the lone warrior. He played an innings which highlighted his class and temperament and took India very close to securing a lead.

Then, Ishant bowled one of the finest spells of his career and gave India hopes of a rare overseas victory. But the Indian batsmen put up a disappointing show again and India lost by 31 runs.

Here are five hits and misses from the game:

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#5 Hit: Kohli’s batting and captaincy

There was a humongous amount of expectations on Kohli coming into this match with a lot of curiosity surrounding his duel with Anderson.

Virat yet again proved he is simply the best batsman in the world with a world class century in the 1st innings and a fighting half-century in the second innings.

The highlight of his century was the outstanding temperament which was missing big time on the 2014 tour.

Once he got to his century, he counterattacked the English bowlers in his own way playing glorious cover drives and flicks. In the first innings, Anderson troubled him throughout his spell but in the second innings, he looked more settled and comfortable.

His captaincy too was right on target from the beginning and his move to bring Ashwin early into the attack proved to be a masterstroke. This was a dream match for Kohli and nightmare match for all other Indian batsmen.

#4 Miss: Rahul at No.3

Rahul failed to fulfill his captain’s faith in him with meager outcomes with the bat in both the innings

This has been a breakthrough year for KL Rahul with his performances in the IPL widely appreciated by many critics and legends alike.

His shot-making ability is second to none and his incredible form and ability to turn the match in a few overs made Kohli choose him over the more experienced Pujara.

But he failed to fulfill his captain’s faith in him with meager outcomes with the bat in both the innings.

His dismissal in the first innings was disappointing as he chased down a wide delivery and played a drive with little feat movement and saw his stumps castled.

If he has to survive in England, he has to curb his natural instincts and learn to respect the conditions early in his innings.

#3 Hit: Sam Curran's all-round performance

Curran was selected as the Player of The Match

With this being only his second match, many experts thought Sam Curran to be the weak link in this England bowling lineup.

But surprisingly he was the one who shifted the momentum in favour of England with a breathtaking spell in which he accounted for the wickets of Dhawan, Vijay, Rahul.

Even more surprising was his scintillating counterattack in the second innings which eventually proved to be the difference between both the teams

#2 Miss: Rahane’s performance

Rahane is not enjoying the best of times

This has been a terrible year for Rahane. First, he was dropped from the two tests in South Africa and then he lost his place in the limited overs team.

It seems like his rough patch with the bat has taken a toll on his confidence and he looks like a pale shadow of the man who counter-attacked Anderson and co on a green top at Lord’s.

His threw away his wicket in both the innings by chasing deliveries well outside the off stump and edging to the slip cordon.

India badly needs Rahane at his best as they need an experienced player to steady their wobbly lower middle order.

#1 Hit: Ashwin’s bowling

In this match, he completely showcased his unmatched skills as an off-spinner and his ability to pick wickets regularly

Everyone knows that Ashwin is a matchwinner in subcontinental pitches but his ability to win matches outside Asia has always been a huge question mark in his otherwise impeccable bowling record.

In this match, he completely showcased his unmatched skills as an off-spinner and his ability to pick wickets regularly. The highlight of his bowling in this match was his dismissals of Cook in both the innings.

In the first innings, he dismissed Cook with an absolute cracker that drifted in and landed in the leg stump and then turned magnificently to hit the top of off stump.

His second innings dismissal of Cook was even better with the ball drifting in a few more inches this time and then turned to completely bamboozle Cook’s off stump.