Win or lose, India put up a creditable performance in series

The manner in which fortunes swung from one extreme to the other on the fourth day of the final Test of the ongoing series between England and India reflected in a nutshell the intensity of the contest between the two teams. Irrespective of who wins the match, it can be stated with confidence that the quality of cricket on offer right through the five matches was exceptionally high. None of the matches, except the second Test that India won by a huge margin, was one-sided events. 

England gained the upper hand in the first Test only in the final innings, while in the third Test, the hosts squeezed through by a very narrow margin of 22 runs. The fourth Test saw India script a 'Houdini-like' escape, when their batsmen hung on to earn a well-deserved draw, after being on the back foot for most of the match.

India’s performance during this series is creditable for two reasons. One, this is the most inexperienced side to tour England in the last 50 years. We had a new captain, whose skills at leading the team in the longer version of the game were untested. And two, there were very few players in the squad who had experience of playing Tests in England. There were questions regarding crucial positions in the batting order and about the form of key players.

To add to all this, there was a strict direction that the workload of Jasprit Bumrah, the leader of the bowling attack, was to be regulated, which effectively meant that he could play in only three Tests in the series. These were the reasons why many observers, including this columnist, had predicted that the tour would be a tough one for this side.

The other factor that merits consideration is that they took on a full-strength England side playing in home conditions. Since 2022, when Brendon McCullum took over as coach and Ben Stokes was appointed the captain, England have been on a roll, playing a brand of positive and entertaining cricket, popularly known as “bazball”, that won the side fans from across the globe. The results on the cricket field, too, have been impressive, with the team winning 12 of the 18 Tests played at home during the last three years before the start of the current series. This phase has also seen the emergence of a set of brilliant cricketers like Harry Brook, Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson, thus lending the side a perfect blend of youth and experience. 

The intense desire of England to win this series could be seen from the fire displayed by their skipper Stokes on the field. He bowled long spells, which he seldom does in Tests, so much so that it led to a tear of his shoulder muscle that forced him to miss the final match. He also came good with the bat, playing crucial innings, even scoring a stroke-filled century in the drawn Test at Old Trafford. He was also the “Player of the Match” in the Tests at Lord’s and Manchester. His fighting spirit was amply demonstrated in the incident that took place during the closing hours of the fourth Test when he wanted to stop the game, when the Indian pair at the crease - Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar - were close to individual hundreds. This was tried solely as a “mind game”, intended to deny the batsmen the confidence that a century would bring to their approach in the Test match to follow!

The main factor that contributed to India's impressive display was the superlative performance of Shubman Gill, both as captain and batsman. Gill’s tally of 754 runs in the series places him just below the legendary Sunil Gavaskar for the highest number of runs scored in a series. More important than the quantum of runs were the situations under which they were scored and the style and confidence displayed while making them. The double century at Edgbaston laid the foundation for India’s win in the second Test, while the hundred in the second innings at Old Trafford inspired the great fightback that helped to save the game for India. He also handled the bowling resources astutely, while conducting himself with poise and dignity on the field. The only instance when he lost his cool, at Lord’s when Zak Crawley tried to waste time in order to avoid facing Indian bowlers towards the close of play on day three, showed that he is human as well, capable of showing emotions and passions!

Amongst the batsmen, openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul led the way with consistent performances. Rahul donned the mantle of the senior batsman effortlessly and came up with flawless innings, which included two hundreds and two fifties, in four of the five games. Jaiswal started strongly with a century in the first Test and a near one in the next, but appeared to lose his way after that as England fast bowlers seemed to get the better of him. But he staged a strong comeback with an outstanding century in the second innings of the fifth Test, which helped India to set up a tough last innings target for the hosts. 

The success of Gill, Rahul and Jaiswal ensured that the absence of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma was not felt at all. Gill’s superb form more than made up for the void left by Kohli at the no. 4 position in the batting order, while Rahul settling down comfortably in the opening slot eased worries brought by Rohit’s exit. Karun Nair and Sai Sudarshan played in three tests and scored a half-century each. However, the feeling remains that neither capitalised on the opportunities provided, due to a combination of bad luck and loss of concentration at crucial junctures.

Rishabh Pant emerges from the tour taller and stronger, despite suffering a fractured toe that made him miss the last Test. His centuries in both innings of the first Test and the string of fifties in the next three showed that he had recovered fully from the slump in form that plagued him during the last edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). His act in walking out to bat with his foot in a cast due to a fracture of the metatarsal bone, at Edgbaston, will be recalled with reverence so long as the game is played. Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar justified their billing as batting all-rounders with the match-saving partnership that saw both of them reach the three-figure mark, being the icing on the cake. Jadeja’s skills with the ball, never too great on pitches outside India, has come down a notch or two, while Sundar keeps improving with each match in both departments. One hopes that the selectors persist with him during tests at home as well and do not dump him as was done after a similar set of performances in Australia in 2020-21. Shardul Thakur, unfortunately, disappointed with the ball and did not live up to the expectations with the willow as well.

Mohamed Siraj came into his own during this series and emerged as the leading wicket-taker for India. He also effortlessly took over the task of leading the attack in the two tests that Bumrah did not play. Siraj is at his peak as a bowler, but it would be prudent to manage his workload also to ensure that his body does not suffer due to injuries in the years ahead. Bumrah bowled with speed and venom in the three tests he played, picking up 14 wickets, including two fivers. It was a sane decision on the part of team management to resist the temptation of playing him in the final Test. 

The emergence of Akash Deep and Prasidh Krishna as frontline fast bowlers is a big, positive development from this tour. Both of them improved by leaps and bounds as the series unfurled, which only goes to prove that a long tour often offers the best lessons to a budding cricketer. Akash grew so much in confidence that he even struck a half-century in the final Test, after coming out to bat as a nightwatchman. 

Kuldeep Yadav has every reason to feel disheartened as the team management did not give him an opportunity even once. The lack of depth in batting might have prompted them to prefer all-rounders who could contribute with the bat rather than a specialist spin bowler. The fact that pitches, ground conditions, and weather conditions favoured the pace bowlers might also have influenced their decision. 

Thus, this was a series that saw plenty of gains for India. The fighting spirit and the never-say-die attitude shown by the players augur well for the future of the side. In many ways, the positive warmth that followers of the game feel after this series is similar to what was felt when an injury-hit Indian side tamed the mighty Aussies in their own den in January 2021. Though this team could not repeat the miracle that India carved out on that occasion, they equipped themselves very well and fought hard to provide a top-quality contest that followers of the game the world over enjoyed.

At this juncture, it is worth noting that, except Gill and Siraj, none of the series' success stories had opportunities to prove their mettle in the years that followed, due to the policy of preparing turning tracks at home to favour spin bowlers. Players such as Thirumalai Natarajan and Navdeep Saini, who had proved their mettle, were completely discarded, while Shardul Thakur and Washington Sundar did not get too many chances to display their wares. It was sad to see these bright cricketers, who had done so much to make their countrymen feel proud, languish in the sidelines. It is up to the authorities in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the national selectors to ensure that a similar tragedy does not happen when India gets ready to play the next series at home. There must be a conscious attempt to prepare sporting wickets that offer help to both the fast bowlers and the batsmen. This will not only help sustain the momentum generated by this series but also bring spectators back to the stadiums in large numbers to watch Test matches.