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Key Points

Duckett and Crawley have rewritten history as England's most prolific opening pair against India in Tests. Their 8th 50+ partnership broke the previous record held by Cook and Strauss. While Duckett shines with a century and two fifties, Crawley has struggled to convert starts. England seized control after Gus Atkinson's fiery five-wicket spell restricted India to 224. The hosts trail by just 115 runs with 9 wickets in hand.

Key Points: Duckett-Crawley Break England Opening Record Against India in Tests

  • Duckett-Crawley surpass Cook-Strauss for most England opening runs vs India
  • Duckett averages 51 with 408 runs in the series
  • Crawley hits 3 fifties but lacks big scores
  • England dominate India after Atkinson's 5-wicket haul
3 min read

Duckett-Crawley slams most 50+ partnerships as opening pair against India in Test

England's Duckett and Crawley set a new record for most 50+ partnerships (8) as openers against India in Tests, surpassing Cook-Strauss.

"Duckett and Crawley have added 984 runs in 18 innings, the most by any England opening pair against India. – Match Report"

London, August 1

England openers Zak Crawley-Ben Duckett continue their brilliance against India as the duo now has the most 50+ (8) partnerships for an opening pair against the Men in Blue in Tests.

They achieved this feat in their outing in the fifth and final match of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against India on Friday at the Oval.

Duckett and Crawley in 18 innings have added 984 runs as opening pair against India the most runs by an England openers, against the Men in Blue surpassing 932 runs in 20 innings added by Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss.

Duckett is the second highest run scorer for England in the ongoing Test series against India, he has slammed 408 in 8 innings at an average of 51.00 with two fifties and a hundred under his belt.

On the other hand, Crawley has got starts in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy but has not converted them into big scores; he has managed to make 264 runs in eight innings at an average of 37.71 with three fifties under his name.

Coming to the match, a five-wicket haul by pacer Gus Atkinson and a quickfire 92-run opening stand by Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley pushed India to the back foot during the first session of the second day of the fifth Test against England at The Oval on Friday.

At the end of the session's play, England was 109/1, with Crawley (52*) and Ollie Pope (12*) unbeaten. They trail by 115 runs. India kick-started day two at 204/6, with Karun Nair (52*) and Washington Sundar (19*) unbeaten.

The duo started the day on a positive note, with Nair and Sundar getting a boundary each against Josh Tongue in the first over of the day.

Nair did survive a leg-before-wicket against Atkinson, but Josh Tongue got him lbw for 57 in 109 balls, with eight fours. Tongue sprayed it down the leg side and well outside off, but the ball nipped back in sharply and beat the inside edge of Nair's bat to crash into his back pad knee roll. India was 218/7, with the 55-run partnership over between the duo.

Sundar also holed it to the deep square leg in the hands of Jamie Overton, with Tongue getting his wicket for 26 in 55 balls, with three fours. India was 220/8.

Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna were done away with by Atkinson, who got his five-wicket haul. India was bundled out for 224 runs in 69.4 overs.

Atkinson (5/33) and Tongue (3/57) were destructive with the ball for England, never letting India settle with a massive partnership.

Brief Scores: England: 109/1 (Zak Crawley 52*, Ben Duckett 43, Akash Deep 1/46) vs India.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Priya N
While their partnership is impressive, let's not forget our openers Rohit and Gill have shown promise too. Just need more consistency! #TeamIndia 🇮🇳
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Amit K
The real issue is our bowling attack in overseas conditions. 984 runs conceded to one opening pair is unacceptable. BCCI needs to invest more in developing fast bowlers who can exploit English conditions.
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Sarah B
As a cricket fan living in India, I must say Duckett's footwork against spin has been brilliant to watch. Maybe our young batsmen can learn from his technique against turning deliveries.
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Nikhil C
Why are we still calling it Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy? Both retired years ago! Time to rename it after current legends like Kohli or Root. The nostalgia is nice but cricket has moved on.
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Divya L
Credit where it's due - this England pair has shown remarkable consistency. But remember, records are meant to be broken! Our boys will come back stronger next series 💪
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Kevin U
The real test will be when they tour India next. Our spinners on turning tracks will be a completely different challenge for them. Can't wait for that series!

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