Bumrah & Shami’s All-Round Effort, Rahul’s Ton – Big Moments From Lord’s Test
India vs England 2nd Test: Shami and Bumrah starred with the bat and later put India in front with the ball.
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Team India and their fans would have been happy with a draw in the second Test match at Lord's until Sunday night. Few would have expected a comeback or turnaround, the kind of which they witnessed on Day Five on Monday. The match, which would be remembered for ages to come, was full of drama and ups and downs all through its five days. We take a look at some of its best moments.
Class Act: KL Rahul
Image: Alastair Grant / PTI
Day One: KL Rahul Scores a Ton After a Strong Opening-Wicket Partnership with Rohit Sharma
Put in to bat first, India were off to a dream start thanks to a 126-run opening stand between Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. After a cautious start, Sharma switched gears and smashed Sam Curran for four boundaries in an over.
He dominated the partnership, hitting 11 fours and one six in his innings of 83, with Rahul happy to play second fiddle.
After the fall of two quick wickets, the responsibility of rebuilding the Indian innings fell on Rahul, as he was joined by his captain Virat Kohli, not in the best of form. Rahul did not yield an inch and scored his first 20 runs from 100 balls.
Then, he started upping the ante and scored the next 30 runs in just 37 balls to bring up his fifty. Looking comfortable at the crease, Rahul shared a 127-run partnership with Kohli and inched closer to his first Test century at Lord's.
Rahul reached the three-figure mark in the 78th over when he guided a Mark Wood delivery towards third-man and ended the day at 127 not out, putting India in a commanding position at 276-3 at stumps on Day One.
"It's very, very special. Not because it was a hundred at Lord's, that adds to the excitement and joy. I have been away from Test cricket for a couple of years now. I have grown up wanting to be a Test cricketer and to play Test cricket. That was the generation I grew in. My father loves Test cricket. My coaches always wanted me to be a Test cricketer. I always wanted to do well in Test cricket," Rahul said during a press conference at the end of day's play.
He added, "Getting dropped from Test cricket was disappointing. It did hurt but I had nobody else to blame but myself. Performances weren't there; I just had to wait for my opportunity. The way it came to me I think it was meant to be for me."
Old is Gold: James Anderson
Image: PTI
Day 2 - Day of the Bowlers: A Fifer for James Anderson as India's Middle-Order Fails Yet Again
If Day One belonged to the batters, Day Two was dominated by the bowlers. Ollie Robinson struck off the second ball on the day, and James Anderson with his first as England managed to wrestle away the momentum from India. Anderson took his 31st five-wicket haul and, at 39 years of age, became the old Test bowler in 70 years to take a fiver.
India's hero on Day One, KL Rahul, could only add two runs to his score and was dismissed very early on the morning of the second day for 129. After that, the Indian batting line-up fell like a pack of cards, with them losing their final seven wickets for just 88 runs. India's middle-order woes continued as India's famed numbers 3, 4 and 5 had could only manage 52 runs among them.
Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja had to curb their instincts and shared a 51-run partnership for the sixth wicket. The next four wickets fell for just 33 runs as Anderson, and Moeen Ali went through the tail.
Later, Mohammed Siraj sent Dom Sibley and Haseeb Hameed packing in the space of two deliveries after Tea before England captain Joe Root defended the hat-trick ball confidently.
India's pacers continued to ask questions of Burns and Root, both of whom had to take a cautious approach and absorb the pressure.
They weathered the storm and put on 85 runs for the third wicket. It took a peach from Shami to trap Burns LBW for 49.
England went to stumps on Day 2 at 119/3, trailing India by 245 runs.
Leading from the front: Joe Root
Image: PTI/ Alastair Grant
Day Three: Root Cause of Misery and a Field Day for Social Media
Joe Root, arguably in the form of his life, was busy toppling records on Day Three. He scored his second century of the series, fourth at Lord's, and became the second-youngest English batsman after Alastair Cook to score 9000 runs in Test cricket.
Jonny Bairstow too scored a half-century and shared a 121-run fourth-wicket partnership with Root. India managed to take the wickets of Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler after lunch, but England had another excellent session, adding 98 runs to take their score to 314-5, with Root was still going strong on 132 at tea.
The hosts dominated the first two sessions, but the third was meant for India. Ishant Sharma brought India back in the game with two quick wickets as India took the last five England wickets for 77 runs, leaving Root stranded on 180, just 20 runs short of a well-deserved doubled century. Anderson was subjected to a few short ones by Bumrah. India dismissed England for 391, with the hosts enjoying a 27-run lead.
India's 12th Man
Image: PTI
The day also saw a lot of drama as England fans threw bottle corks at India opener KL Rahul, who was standing close to the boundary, during the first session's play.
The images of the incident went viral on social media, with skipper Virat Kohli asking Rahul to throw the corks back to the crowd.
In another incident, an intruder tried to join the Indian team on the field. Dressed in cricket whites and sporting an Indian Test jersey, the man walked out onto the field to join the Indian team after lunch. The man, who had 'Jarvo 69' written on his shirt, was stopped by security personnel as he walked onto the field.
On being stopped, the man pointed to the sponsor's logo, followed by the BCCI logo on his shirt. He even asked for the ball to be given to him. The whole incident left the Indian team, especially Mohammad Siraj, in splits.
As expected, the 18-second video clip went viral on social media.
Mark Wood celebrates with his teammates after dismissing India opener KL Rahul.
Image: PTI
Day Four: India's Top Order Fails
Mark Wood and Sam Curran sent openers KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and skipper Virat Kohli back to the pavilion before lunch on Day Four. This meant the responsibility of building the Indian innings fell on two out of form batters – Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane.
With the ball not doing much and the pitch having slowed down, it was the perfect opportunity for them to find some form. The two did not disappoint and shared a 100-run partnership for the fifth wicket.
But, just when it looked like they had found their feet, tragedy struck. India lost three wickets in quick succession and ended Day Four of the second Test match at Lord's against England at 181-6, with a lead of 154 runs.
India had Rishabh Pant, the last established batsman, and tailender Ishant Sharma at the crease. The tail comprising Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, and Mohammed Siraj was to follow. England had the upper hand and India needed a miracle.
Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah shared a a 77-run partnership for the ninth wicket.
Image: PTI
Day Five: The Miracle Arrives in Form of 'Batsmen' Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah
Rishabh Pant could only add eight runs to his overnight score, which included a glorious boundary off Anderson, and Ishant Sharma added 12 to take his score to 16 before both were shown the way back to the pavilion.
India had a lead of 182 runs when Bumrah came to the crease to join his teammate Shami at the crease.
As often seen, the two tailenders were off to an unconventional start with some unorthodox and courageous shots.
The England bowlers decided to give Jasprit Bumrah a taste of his own medicine and bowled a barrage of bouncers at him. A smiling Bumrah kept swinging his bat wildly at everything he got.
Things Get Heated Up!
Soon, Bumrah got involved in a heated verbal exchange with Jos Buttler and Mark Wood. The altercation, though, got him all fired up, and he hit Wood to the boundary with a wild flash on the very first ball after the argument.
Wood answered back with a fiery bouncer, which hit Bumrah on the side of the grill of his helmet. Later, both Shami and Bumrah were exchanging words with Anderson.
With each run, the two batsmen got more and more and confident and soon took India's lead to over 250, as an animated Kohli cheered them on from the historic Lord's balcony. There were a few close shaves for both but luck was on their side on Monday.
Shami brought his second Test fifty in style, bludgeoning Ali for a four at cow corner and then following it up with a monstrous six. By this time, the defensive England team were clueless.
The two received a well-deserved standing ovation from their teammates when they walked back to the pavilion at lunch after having put India in a strong position with a 259-run lead.
Team India soon declared their innings at 298/8, setting England a target of 272 runs. Bumrah (34*) and Shami (56*) shared an 89-run partnership for the ninth wicket and put India in a dominant position.
Shami celebrates after dismissing Dom Sibley on Monday.
Image: PTI
Back to Their Preferred Role, Bumrah, Shami Give India a Dream Start With Ishant and Siraj Joining In
After shining with the bat, bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami were back in the field doing what they do best, giving India a perfect start.
Bumrah drew first blood when he dismissed opener Rory Burns for a duck on the third ball of the first over of the England innings. Just an over later, Shami 140 kph delivery found the nick of Dom Sibley's bat and sent him back walking.
Ishant Sharma soon took two quick wickets and reduced England to 67-4 at tea.
Just two balls after tea, Bumrah got the big wicket of Root, having him caught at the slips and England were reduced to 67-5. Moeen Ali stuck in the middle for a bit.
Then, it was Mohammed Siraj's turn to join the party as he took two back to back wickets of Ali and Sam Curran to reduce England to 90-7.
Ollie Robinson stuck it out for a bit but Bumrah was too good for him. Siraj then wrapped up the tail to give India a well-deserved win at Lord's, their third in 89 years.
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