Pant and Sundar looked calm throughout their partnership and demonstrated a sense of purpose that has come to define the Indian team over the last few months.
After losing three wickets in the first session of play, India were on the back foot with James Anderson and Ben Stokes looking dangerous. Despite a patient knock from Rohit Sharma, the Indian middle-order failed to raise their game; but just when one thought that the hosts could fall well short of England’s 205, Rishabh Pant and Washington Sundar played maturely to snatch back the advantage.
The youngsters shared a stand of 113 and helped end the day with a lead of 89 after they had been reduced to 146/6. Here are the takeaways from the day:
Anderson and his untiring spell
On a searing day when temperatures read 38°C, Anderson bowled his heart out, sending down 14 overs in the day including seven in a row in the second session. His spell in the first session, however, set the tone for the day. His first 41 balls included as many as 37 dots, and he was rewarded with the wicket Ajinkya Rahane at the stroke of lunch with a back-of-a-length delivery just outside the off-stump. It was his 900th international wicket. A few overs ago, he had sent down an excellent length delivery that seamed slightly away from Rahane and beat his bat.
Anderson conceded just four scoring shots in the first session on Day 2, living up to his reputation as a champion across conditions. He pitched the ball short as a variation, got the SG ball to move away consistently, and was able to get the ball to reverse swing as early as the 12th over.
Stokes gets Kohli, Rohit
After England misread the pitch (again) and fielded one fast bowler on a hard wicket, the onus was on Stokes to bowl alongside Anderson upfront on Day 1. He bowled 10 overs on the trot (with a change of ends) and never let go of the intensity even when the ball became old and soft. He picked up his first wicket of the day when the ball kicked up from short of a length around a fourth-stump line to send Virat Kohli back for a duck. Stokes continued to be a threat, getting them to bounce both off a length and just short of it. He also got the ball to jag in off the seam, hurrying the batsman as the ball skidded on.
He also found reverse swing with the soft ball, and bowled a beauty to dismiss Rohit Sharma. The length ball, well outside off stump, curved back at the last moment to trap Rohit on the back leg with the impact marginally in line with off and the ball hitting the top of the middle stump.
Stokes bowled a total of 20 overs on Day 2, and could barely walk by the end of his final spell.
Rishabh and Sundar save India again
India were in a spot of bother after being reduced to 146/6 in reply to England’s first-innings score of 205. Rohit and R Ashwin had fallen in quick succession. At this point, Rishabh Pant and Washington Sundar came together and played with maturity to put India into the lead and the advantage at the end of day’s play.
They stitched 113 runs in 26 overs, initially batting with caution before taking on the tired bowlers to play their strokes. They used the depth of the crease well, made full use of the loose deliveries, and took a few risks once they got their eye in. Pant, in particular, played some incredible strokes, the most outrageous being a reverse lap off a bowler of Anderson’s calibre. He got to his third Test hundred with a slog sweep for a six.
Pant and Sundar looked calm throughout their partnership and demonstrated a sense of purpose that has come to define the Indian team over the last few months. After the day’s play, Pant revealed that they were keen on putting a price on their wicket and not to bat recklessly – yet another evidence of their temperament and maturity.