London, August 1
Following a shambolic first session with the ball for India during the second day at The Oval, ex-Indian coach Ravi Shastri was critical of the team's bowling, saying that they have been "blown away" and adviced them to "stick to a line" and not try too many things going forward.
After India could add just 20 runs to their overnight score and were bowled out for 224 runs, they were outclassed by some audacious hitting from England's opening pair of Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley as the duo put on 92 runs for the first wicket and helped the Three Lions to reach 109/1 at Lunch on Day 2 of the last Test of the five match series on Friday.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Ravi said about Team India, "The game has moved forward and India have been blown away. They lost four wickets for 20 runs, and then England scored so quickly."
"That is alarming for India, so they will sit down and say, 'let us focus on where we want to bowl'. The batters will try different things, but India needs to stick to a line and length and build pressure at both ends, not try too many things," he added.
Also, England ex-captain Ricky Ponting remarked that England "could not have asked for much more".
"The disappointing thing from India's point of view is how much the ball has done, and they have not been able to use that at all. We have watched England be front-foot and take the game forward over the last four or five years and they have done that perfectly today. They have scored at almost seven runs an over," he added.
Ponting said that the English opening pair of Crawley and Duckett can put the bowlers off their length, and he does not think India bowled full enough with the new ball.
"They also have not bowled enough bouncers, something we talked about in the last game [at Emirates Old Trafford]. They have not pushed the batters back and got them thinking," he concluded.
After England opted to bat first, they reduced India to 153/6. A 58-run partnership between Karun Nair (57 in 109 balls, with eight fours) and Washington Sundar (26 in 55 balls, with three fours) was the most meaningful part of the inning as India was bundled out for 224 runs. Gus Atkinson (5/33) took a scorching five-wicket haul, while Josh Tongue (3/57) was also good.
In reply, England were 109/1 at Lunch, with Zak Crawley (52* in 43 balls, with 12 fours) and Ollie Pope (12* in 16 balls, with two fours) unbeaten. Duckett (43 in 38 balls, with five fours and two sixes) put on a 92-run stand for the opening wicket, completely dismantling the Indian bowlers.
- ANI
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