Visakhapatnam: Virat Kohli’s (151 batting, 241b, 15×4) 14th hundred in 50 Tests and Cheteshwar Pujara’s (119, 204b, 14×4, 2×6) 10th put India in a position they would have wanted after winning the toss here Thursday. The first day of the second India-England Test at the Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium here saw the hosts firmly in command, probably for the first time since England arrived in the country.
Cricket at times, can be sublime and at times boring and the game provided periods of both on the opening day. That period in the morning when James Anderson (3/44) and Sturat Broad (1/39) bowled with their tails up, making the ball talk and the Indians trying their best to keep the wickets intact… the battle, it was so sublime; so was the time, Kohli and Pujara took 42 runs off five overs in the half hour before tea. It was boring also when England skipper Alastair Cook employed an 8-1 field to stem the flow of runs. He had no options, as for a period it looked England had nothing but to hang on to the Indians’ coat-tails to prevent them from racing away.
KL Rahul did not last long… like his predecessor Gautam Gambhir, dismissed off the fifth ball he faced, caught in the slips off Broad. And when Murali Vijay was suckered into a false hook shot by Anderson, it appeared that India, at 22 for two, had suddenly lost the plot.
But then in stepped captain Kohli. Except for a reprieve on 56, when the butter fingers of Adil Rashid let through an intended hook, Kohli looked truly in command. And in Pujara, he found that perfect ally as the two went about first in resurrecting the innings, and then putting the England bowlers on the mat.
The masterful pair of hundreds and their 226-run third wicket stand was enough cause for India to celebrate at the end of the day with the pitch already showing signs of wear and tear with some deliveries turning while others keeping dangerously low.
As Cook fumbled for his options, Moeen Ali, England’s senior spinner, was curiously overlooked until the 40th over of the innings – an inexplicable delay, notwithstanding the early control that Rashid in particular had been able to exert. Instead, armed with a flat ball, he encountered Kohli in full exhibition mode and in his seventh over was banished for three fours through cover, third-man and mid-on respectively. The war against England was truly on.
But then the bowling master that he is, Anderson returned for two spells after tea to provide a glimmer of hope to the visitors. First, he had Pujara caught behind, beating the batsman with reverse swing. Then with nine balls remaining in the day, he induced Ajinkya Rahane (23) into a false shot and again Jonny Bairstow behind the stumps did the rest.
Earlier both captains, when they walked in for the toss looked desperately tense. Both knew a lot hinged on the coin ruling in their favour. When Cook lost the toss, he with a shrug of his broad shoulders said ‘he had nothing’ to lose. Well he might have to reassess that statement now.
‘Batting with intent has helped me score’
Cheteshwar Pujara, who is in the form of his life, said here Thursday that he has not made any changes in his technique but the intent has surely turned positive with the advice of head coach Anil Kumble.
“I have not changed much as far as technique is concerned. After I missed out on a couple of hundreds against New Zealand, I thought something was wrong. But Anilbhai assured me that everything was fine and he just asked me to work on my mindset, my intent. That helped,” Pujara told reporters after the end of the day’s play.
This was the first instance when Pujara reached his century with a six and he described the feeling as ‘special’. However, he was quick to point out that all he is doing at the moment is capitalising on his form.
“Both Virat and myself had one goal and that was to bat as long as we could. Everything else did not matter,” asserted Pujara. “No doubt, getting to a century with a six is special, but I feel I should have stayed unbeaten at the end of the day.”
Pujara also pointed out that he enjoys batting with skipper Virat Kohli as the latter’s shot-making abilities takes the pressure of him. “I always enjoy batting with Virat,” informed Pujara. “He likes to dominate. We just wanted to capitalise on the situation. I enjoyed batting with him.”
Foot problem
London: Stuart Broad has a ‘foot problem’ but England do not yet know how serious it is, according to the bowler’s opening partner Jimmy Anderson. “He’s got a bit of a foot problem, he’s been in the wars, he’s got a graze as well on his arm so he’s nursing those at the moment in the dressing room. He did really well to get through the day,” Anderson was quoted as saying by ‘Sky Sports 2’ here.
