India vs Afghanistan, Only Test, Day 2: Hits and Misses

After losing a flurry of wickets in the last session of the first day, India pulled off a dominant performance against Afghanistan on the second day to secure a massive victory against the Test debutant nation at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. The home team, who were led by Ajinkya Rahane in this Test in place of injured Virat Kohli, displayed their supremacy to win the game by a massive margin of an innings and 262 runs.

Afghanistan players lost on the day, but Afghanistan cricket won manifold. These bunch of talented and spirited individuals, who have scripted a fairytale for a nation in turmoil, will always be remembered fondly in their country's cricketing history for years galore.

Quite fittingly, they were given the chance to lift the trophy first in Bangalore, courtesy a warm gesture from the Indian cricket team. It has been an eventful couple of days in Bangalore and certainly, both the teams will take back a lot of positives from this game.

Listed below are the hits and misses from the day:

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#5 Hit: Indian opening bowlers

Umesh Yadav

Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma, India's openers with the new ball, displayed their class from the word go and picked up crucial wickets in both the innings. The latter did well in the first innings, scalping two Afghanistan wickets in the five overs he bowled. He remained consistent in the follow-on as well, getting a brace yet again.

Yadav, though, created a real impact in the second innings, picking up three wickets with his pace and precision. Overall, the duo bowled 25 overs through the game, picking up eight wickets between them and wrecking havoc in the Afghanistan top order.

This is a strong side for the Indian contingent going forward, especially with tough overseas assignments coming forth in the next few months. Both Yadav and Sharma are amongst the four seamers India rely on during tough times, and if Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami manage to get their best to the table in the near future, the bowling attack as well as the bench under Kohli tooks will look strong and formidable on any cricketing surface.

#4 Miss: Afghanistan batting line-up

Mohammad Shahzad

While the Afghanistan bowlers showed signs of zeal and persistence in the Indian innings, their batsmen fell like nine pins throughout the second day. They lost 20 wickets on the day and could not figure their defences out until it was too late in the match.

No player could last for 90 balls, while neither could cross 40 runs. They folded for 109 runs in the second innings and for 103 in the third.

The Indian duo of spin-bowlers dismissed batsmen for fun, and with their undisputable experience, toyed with the Afghanistan batsmen.

#3 Hit: Ravichandran Ashwin

The right-arm off-break bowler was in his element throughout the game, churning out gems with his talent and experience.

Picking up five wickets in the game, he dominated the proceedings and made sure that the Afghanistan batsmen did not feel comfortable on the crease. His performance in the second innings, in particular, was reminiscent of his best performances in the white flannels.

Ashwin scalped four wickets in just eight overs in the innings, and then added one more dismissal to his tally in the third.

#2 Miss: Rashid Khan

This leg-spinner has been an absolute success everywhere he has gone till now, but as they say, Test cricket is a different cup of tea. Rashid Khan bowled a plethora of overs throughout the Indian innings, but could only pick up two wickets in almost 35 overs.

He leaked runs left, right, and centre, failing to create an impact on the proceedings and falling to the experience of the Indian batsmen in the format. His bowling figures read two wickets for 154 runs in 13.5 overs.

#1 Hit: Ravindra Jadeja

Ravindra Jadeja

Ravi Jadeja was so effective with the ball throughout the day, that the Indian skipper seemed to him off for a few overs later in the game just to let Afghanistan enjoy their moment for few more hours.

While he still dismissed two batsmen in the second innings, he truly came into his own in the third, where he picked up four wickets.

It was a brilliant performance from the left-hander, who needed just 13 overs on the day to have a massive impact on the result of the game.