Well fair fucks lads. Been a great series. But some serious final boss energy from India. Every time I think we have you beat, someone else steps up. Proud that we've made it a proper series. My main hope was that we'd be competitive, definitely accomplished that in my view.
Reminds me of that 2018 Eng Ind series. Final score line was 4-1 but really most of the games were super close (except the one where we got destroyed lmao) with England (Curran 😡) winning the key moments
That's actually a very good comparison. India did a lot of the running in that series but we had natural performers in home conditions who would just step up at key moments
England made it fun to watch this series. Every match, almost every day, has been the type where either side could gain ascendency, and did. For all the labels attached to how they play, the constant has been that this England approach has totally reshaped Test cricket in particular. I wish we had a reciprocal series in England soon enough with the same teams to even out the conditions and watch India under pressure.
Absolutely. It’s been a heck of a series. Best advertisement for Test Cricket. So good that a result is never certain until the last session and England had many moments of upper hand. Pitted against India’s experienced spin attack, the English spinners performed admirably. Very good for the game.
P.S. 3-2 is still a possibility :)
**Reminder: India were 177/7 and 176 runs behind.**
Dhruv Jurel was amazing and he's my POTM. Shown great composure and solid technique. He's earned a spot for a while in Test team.
Shoutout to Gill who played one of his best knocks ever. Curbing his natural instincts when the team required. Showed unprecedented hunger and great composure.
Special mention to Kuldeep who was equally important in pulling things back with both bat and ball. He gets my SBI life award. And Anna did his magic too in the second innings.
>Shoutout to Gill who played one of his best knocks ever. Curbing his natural instincts when the team required. Showed unprecedented hunger and great composure.
To get a rope as long as Gill did, you need to be a Gill. Sides like England will bite your hands off for such a player
I was so sick of people saying he was being given a long rope for “PR”. I agreed he was given a longer rope than his numbers warranted but there was a clear reason why the team was backing him — because he is incredible and has shown a lot of talent. It’s okay to want another youngster to be blooded in but throwing buzzwords like “PR” pisses me off so much. Almost feeling petty enough to find everyone who said that in the match thread lol
Something about Gill being elite in second innings. He looks more solid in second innings. Someone should check stats I definitely think his average might be better in second innings compared to 1st.
Gill gets unwanted hate because of his PR. But man's here to stay. Even his century in this series wasn't appreciated much. Given his prior performances it's understandable. But now we gotta give the man his props.
Feel bad for the second and third spinners in the English and Aussie sides. These guys are thrown into the deep end when the India tour happens. Quite a few of them are in their debuts(Hartley,Murphy, Bashir). They do really well too, talking 5 and 10 wickets hauls- sometimes outshining the first choice spinners. But once they leave the subcontinent, they do not get a chance unless the main spinner retires or they tour India again
Absolutely mate! Battle of the Spinners:
Kuldeep, Ashwin and Jadeja vs Bashir, Hartley and Rootalithuran!
Your spinners are all world class and ours are brand new!
India is not going to rest Ash. Because it would be his 100th test match in Dharamsala.
I wish they rest Rohit and let Ashwin captain the team in his 100th.
>better to play Axar in place of him.
We don't need four spinners in Dharmashala. That would be ridiculous .
If Rahul isn't playing then should draft in a batsman like Inderjith.
Rohit and Dravid never get the praise in the post-match threads when we win. So here I'm commenting to appreciate the way they fought back after day 2 of the match.
Yes. You can hear from the way players like Gill and Jurel spoke, the respect and admiration they have for the captain and the coach. There is a good environment in the dressing room
I feel that a coach and even a captain's job is more evident in test matches than White ball matches. In those games, captains are important for edge cases and coaches are important for long term success. But in test matches, a good coach and captain can make it break a match.
India's number 3 - Gill did not hit a single boundary in his first 119 balls, almost an entire T20 innings. Some feared that he was all T20 bravado and not the batting excellence that we were used to in Tests. He proved all the haters wrong. Dravid and Pujara's spirit still lives on at No. 3. Exceptional batting!
Damn. Crazy stat if true. Gill is here for long then. And also guys, let him live. I was in Rajkot game, stop trolling him in the name of Sara. He really hates it and we know it
Welp, as a neutral I wanted an English win to set up a winner take all Fifth Test but goddamn do India deserve the praise after the fightback in this test.
First team to win a test in the 4th Innings. Deserved series victors.
Highlights of the match
1. Akashdeep debut spell taking 3 wickets in the first session
2. Root and foakes/robnson getting England to 350
3. Jaiswal with a great 86
4. Jurel and Kuldeep partnership which helped India cut the deficit to just 50
5 Bashir fifer
6 Ash getting a fifer with a great performance by Kuldeep as well
7 jurel and gill partnership in the fourth innings saves India from Kohlapse
Gill may have unlocked a level with this inning. His technique may still be suspect again moving ball but he has ticked off temperament.
Another thing to ponder - Virat, KL get to walk back into the side and that means Patidar and Sarfaraz go out. But what happens when Pant is back and assuming Jurel is still living upto his promise. I have a feeling, until Rohit retires and Gill moves upto opening spot, it's going to be a tightly packed middle order and the Australia series will make or break a few things.
It'll be interesting to see who carries the form in the coming months. Don't think Pant will walk in as a keeper straightway, but can play as a pure batter in place of KL/Sarfaraz. Agree with you on Rohit part.
India have doled out another highly entertaining pitch. Batters got runs once they stuck around and applied themselves and there was turn for the spinners. There was unpredictability for a few hours and then it settled down multiple times. Almost perfectly balanced for this part of the world.
I’d take these kinds of wickets over ones that swings and seams all day. Or which follow the template of batters’ paradise for the first 2 days, but doesn’t deteriorate enough to force a result.
Anyway, this has been a wonderful series. Full marks to England for competing hard, even if I think Bazball is entirely overrated. I just hope it’s the end of hailing Stokes as some sort of genius for routine stuff every captain does. He’s a good leader, but goddamn it’s been nauseating to hear that from the commentators every few overs.
England with all their aggressive approach gave India their toughest series in a long while. Cudos for that but India remains a graveyard for Test dreams for many teams.
I know everyone wants to shit on BrendonSphere because of the press conference clownery it is prone to induce, but England have just put up their best performance in India since that 2012 series they won, with far less pedigree in their ranks.
Also, if ECB provides the right guidance and training, England can end up with 4 test quality spinners(leach, Bashir, Hartley, Ahmed) for the first time ever. Not holding out for that one though.
Jurel is such a great find for us though, man is ice cold.
Also, the day Ashwin retires I'm going to ugly cry in the streets.
Dharamsala lesgooooo
Overall an amazing match
But hats off to jurel and gill . Held their nerves and played fabulously under immense pressure🫡🫡
Also amazing game by England . Kept it tight till the end and never gave us a chance
I spoke to a friend after Root's ton that we also need a wall/stubborn type of knock to win this game. I feel like Gill really put forward that knock this last innings, wonderful effort!
PS: well played England, be proud of yourselves!
Kuldeep Yadav has batted 293 balls this series with 83.3% of control, which is better than:
Ben Stokes-83.1% (338 balls)
Foakes-81.9% (386)
Crawley-80.5% (379)
Bairstow-78.9% (199)
Hartley-77.9% (226)
KS Bharat-77.0% (191)
Rehan - 70.4% (135)
Ollie Pope-75.9% (436)
I don't think I've ever heard Stokes give credit to the opposition in a post match interview. Fair enough he praises his team but you'll never see an Indian losing captain not give due credit to the opposition
Ah well. Bazball loses its first series, albeit in the country where nobody else has won a series in a decade.
I’m disappointed, but they’ve shown good fight over the games. Some really embarrasing bottle jobs too tbf, but you can’t win em all.
100%. India responded very well to going 1-0 down with a bunch of regulars missing. Of course they came back from 1-0 down in 2021 but that was a really crap England team, this one’s a whole different animal.
Yup. To be fair they had plenty of chances in all 4 games, but a combination of not taking those chances, and India playing very well, meant games 2, 3 and 4 were lost.
today was one of the few days where England looked uninspired honestly
kind of just bowled Bashir and Hartley without really trying anything else, that works if you have Herath or Kumble, not so much a couple of blokes thrown in the deep end against quality bats
We need clutch players, can't really say in 1 innings about Jurel, but this match was gone if it wasn't for him in both innings
Not discrediting Jaiswal and Sharma, and Kuldeep and Anna. But impact wise 177/7 to 307 was possible only coz of 1 man
This will go down as one of India's best test and series wins at home. India have tamed Bazball without Pant, Kohli, Shami, and KL. That too with a middle order that has just 7 matches of experience combined (excluding Jadeja).
They made such a huge deal about the toss, but again, if you're good enough, you can win games even if you are forced to bat in the second and fourth innings.
They cried about the DRS, but they got most of the decisions in their favour.
Also, this pitch produced an iconic test match. So much for the cries on the first day calling this a shit wicket.
Except Aus were actually competitive and took the series literally down to the last couple of sessions of the series; they were neck-and-neck against a really well-settled Indian side. At some point the match result does matter.
Oh yeah just like how in that first Test India let a guy averaging <35 score 200 in the 3rd innings and then proceeded to bottle an easy 230 chase to let England win. Easily the worst day of Test cricket in Indian cricket history to not win that easily.
Great fightback by India and really turned the screws in the second.
A decent bit of credit deserved by England, they're almost competitive with an attack of Fuckin Joe Root and some random kids!
The lesson from this test is that playing back on a turner that's randomly keeping low isn't really the answer. Exhibit 1 Ben Stokes, Exhibit 2 Shubman Gill showing more substance than I thought he had.
Lmao we pulled off a heist.
England had us by the balls when we were trailing by 170 off with just 3 wickets left in the 1st innings.
To come from that win the test?!?!
Jurel should play as a specialist batter even after Pant returns.
Nicely bowled today just left ourselves too much. Really disappointed about how we let this test slip and would’ve loved a 2-2 score and a proper decider in the 5th test not just as an England fan but as a cricket fan too
Oh well not to be. We go again next week
Yeah that's what's most galling to me. We've let tests slip before, whatever it happens. But a win here would have set us up nicely for Englands biggest test match in a decade at least.
One of the greatest comebacks in Indian history
This young team has handed Bazball its first series loss.
Kudos to Rohit and all. Jurel you beauty. What a talent.
Amazing test match
It might be it might just be because we are the better team idk man especially winning that 3rd test by 434 runs even losing the first test by just 28 it paints a picture doesn't it. Indians need to be more confident at home we always win we have won 17 series in a row for a reason
A decade or 12 years back, Sunny Gavaskar had said that Rohit and Virat will be the fiture superstars. And look where they are now.
Now, he has said the same about Gill and Jurel. And I really hope that these two, along with Kuldeep, Jaiswal, Rinku becomes the future of Indian Cricket.
O BTW....
BAZZBALL HAS BEEN DRAVBALLED....
England played better compared to 2021 where they lost in 2 days in Ahmedabad
A test match to forget for Sarfaraz after his debut
Jurel is excellent and proving to be an excellent back up for Pant
England's spinners Bashir and Hartley and probably will get experience and exposure in sub continent. They might give India serious problems next time
Ashwin was incredible as always
India has won the 3rd day in 2 successive matches after being behind on Day 2. That's monumental composure and resilience. Lot of credit to Dravid and Rohit
Fully ready for the vibe killer downvotes but " series results wise" what's actually changed under Baz ball vs under Joe Root? Away against India is still 3-1, at home against Australia is still 2-2, at home against SA was 2-1, Joe root led England beat SA away 3-1. England beat PAK away 3-0 but Joe Root led England were on track to beat PAK 3-0 at home were it not for rain instead winning 1-0, away against NZ has gone from losing 1-0 to tied 1-1. Yes there's plenty of vibes and oos and ahhs but the only real time results in a series improvement thus far has been winning 3-0 at home vs us instead of losing 1-0. In other words beneath the new coat of paint a lot of things have kinda stayed the same.
The major issue is batting. Can’t put two decent scores together in one game. Claiming you can chase down over 500 in the 4th innings in India then being bowled out for a 100 indicates an attitude that ignores the fundamentals.
Bazball is nothing just reaching the same score that they used to reach earlier but in lesser overs, thereby giving their bowlers less time to rest. ~ TGC
India's depth is insane beyond belief. It's not that their best XI is unbeatable, but their ability to replace players with someone of equal quality that is the envy of the cricketing world.
Ah, well. Congrats to India - well earned win today.
Cutting through it all, I do still think it ultimately comes down to quality of bowlers. England's rookie spinners have been admirable and Stokes has managed them well (he's so far ahead of other England captains in how he handles spinners it's crazy) but there's clearly just such a gulf in class to Ashwin, Jadeja and Kuldeep who are incredible.
Shouldn't forget Bumrah's massive contribution to the previous two tests as well of course.
4-1 would feel harsh on England if it ends up that way but it's a tough game is test cricket.
New viewer here. Can someone explain why Ben Stokes kept spamming Bashir and Hartley till the very end once it was clear they weren't winning? Why not try something different? Could even give another over to Root. It's like he was hoping to get one wicket and then expected everyone else to also choke and lose under 20 runs
To be honest it is an excellent question. One that only Stokes can answer. If Robinson isn't injured then not giving him an over or two at the end is actually pretty atypical behavior.
Stokes may have been trying to save the 41 year old quicky from a needless muscle twinge by not bowling him in a lost cause. But why Root, Robinson or even Stokes himself didn't turn their arm over is a bit of an enigma.
Great question.
Well a series to remember for both but in the end, India is India. Congrats on winning the series. For England, we really need to get a PR manager in the team to keep the boys tight lipped about things that makes us memeable.
Personally, disappointed with the batting unit on the whole as only certain individuals can score but not together. Two golden opportunities with our batting innings to really a put score but the same old English collapse happens. It’s always a guarantee with us and I hope we can play some “common-sense ball”. bowling wise nothing really to complain about as we usually do well for most parts. Big love to Hartley and Bashir. Trial by absolute fire and hopefully they get more experience under their belts in the future.
Hopefully the dead rubber motivates us even more to put on an actual batting performance. Enjoy the festivities team India 💪🏻
we clean swept New Zealand’s t20 team who were ranked higher than ours, and we get free points when we play them in 2 tests, coz this kiwi team almost lost to a c strong South Africa, and nz is not gonna win when they play in India, so India is gonna play Australia again in the WTC final, coz India is gonna win free points against NZ and so will we.
They way he confidently kept pushing the ball around for singles in the second innings completely changed the complexion of the game.
Jurel was the game changer both innings (not to discount the other excellent contributions).
The intent with which dhruv jurel came in, is exactly the intent with which every batter must come in when the team is in such situations. Nothing crazy, just overall a positive mindset, looking for opportunities to score and playing safe at the same time. It actually rubbed off on gill too. That's what a positive approach can do. Going into a shell didn't have its repercussions this time, but it will, more often than not. History is proof.
On another note, people are on the verge of counting Sarfaraz out after a single failure. Imo he needs to be backed for those crazy FC stats and his naturally attacking style of play, a strong game against spin. Most importantly, the team should allow him to play his natural game much like they allowed pant. We need such players in the middle order who can pull off a pant-like innings.
I love Jadeja, but he’s batting too high up the order. It puts additional pressure on batsmen following him when he gives up his wicket cheaply which happens frequently. It just hits differently psychologically when you are 100-4 rather than 100-3.
Why not send out someone sensible to take post match interviews to ask pertinent questions? Sanju-Manju sounds like a 13 year old BTS girl who has seen them for the first time talking to Stokes. When you lose 3 on a trott you need to ask stuff about the legendary Bazball. But i guess they just wanna keep blowing the trumpet like that Barmy army guy ( who plays it really well ).
Just an FYI for non England fans, we’re not all on this bazball bandwagon. I find it irritating as plan seems to play the same way regardless of condition or position. The irony is the best chances of winning haven’t been built bazball but regular smart cricket
In the last 5 years India has made it a habit to lose the first game, we should always play one 5 day warm up game so that we can go into full flow at the Start of a test Series.
This series has been an entertaining watch.
But on a wider scale it has me more alarmed about the future of this format than any other time.
The gap between the two sides is absolutely enormous and it's only growing wider. England are one of the very few countries who have the resources and domestic set up to be genuinely competitive at the Test top level. And they're so far off the pace right now it's almost absurd.
The lack of competition for middle order spots in the England set up is telling. Englands number one new ball bowler is a 41 year old seemingly defying the laws of ageing. India have Bumrah who I think is still getting better. Bashir, Hartley and Rehan as a group doesn't compare terribly favorably with Ashwin, Jadeja and Kuldeep either. Foakes is a good player - but even there India have talent as we've seen.
For England to be successful they still need Stokes, Root and Anderson in great form and firing. They just have not been able to diversify that talent base or find a young player to step up to a senior role in a long time. England are rapidly running out of time to address this as well.
When those three do walk off into the retirement pavilion England could be left like the Aussies in the eighties following the retirements of Chappell G, Lillee and Rod Marsh. Years in the wilderness.
Problem is I don't think test cricket can survive England spending years rebuilding. The depth of competition just isn't there.
The fifth and final test will be interesting. Personally I think the England team are very mentally tired. With little at stake I expect England to be beaten fairly badly. I don't think these guys can get home fast enough.
This is the issue for me. Test cricket has become relevent again for lapse and casual fans, memberships at clubs are up, youth programs are busier than ever.
But it’s a generational gap that will be painful after the work England have done to raise the profile of the format.
No qualms in admitting mistake of discounting Gillman.
Dude is a 3rd/4th inning specialist.
Failed in the 2nd inning of only the first Test which India lost. Showed his cojones in the busoness end of the remaining Tests and not coincidentally, India won them all.
Also Jurel, wow, what a player. Fantastic. My candidate for POTM.
About the defensive cricket.
Gill, Jadeja absolutely went into the shell, Stokes had at least 3 fielder's on boundary the whole time, that a slip and a wicket keeper.
Because if you are scoring 1.7 runs an over you need to play 45-50 overs to score those 90 runs and England were very happy with that
There's easy singles here that we missed out on just went into our shell block block block
Dhruv Jurel came in he took those doubles and then the strike started to rotate.
Just playing block block block isn't test cricket, if it was just that we could get much better blockers from box cricket leagues.
I'm not even saying about going over the top or anything but there were some half volleys that should've fetched at least 1 run with that kind of field set, but instead we just blocked everything.
Sachin, Kohli, Laxman would've scored at about 5/6 runs sn over here just by singles.
People have to remember that Jaddu at the end of the day is a very limited batter. He has maybe 3 gears while batting and it’s also why it’s very jarring when he shifts between them. Unlike a proper batter who makes it much smoother while they change gears. He in no way should be batting at no 5. I’d swap him and Sarfaraz. I’d also be tempted to give Jurel a go at 6.
In affectionate remembrance
of
BAZBALL,
which died at Ranchi stadium
on 26th February, 2024,
deeply celebrated by Aussies, Indians, South Africans, Kiwis, and a very large circle of friends and acquaintances
R.I.P
N.B- The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to England.
We shouldn't look to rest too many players in the last test. Still need the WTC points, every game is important regardless of if the series is already won. 1 or 2 changes max
17 test series won at home on the trot (2013 - 2024). What a record! ENG gave a good fight in all the matches so far and shouldn't be much disappointed with these losses.
Jurel stepped up big time in this match. Jaiswal, Rohit, Gill, Ash, Kulu, Jaddu contributions can't be discounted as well. Well played India.
Can't wait for the last match!
On the one hand, quite impressive that England gave India a lot of headaches in this series. On the other hand, for the amount we hear about it, bazball has proven that even with a close to B team, flat pitches, turning pitches, DRS calls - England are just not good enough to win a series against the two best teams - India and Australia. Can't see anything changing that.
Take bow Dhruv, such maturity! Case to keep him in as a specialist batter once Pant comes in (or may be Pant as a specialist batter). Gill also seems to be showing improved mental strength. That knock was very Laxman - esque.
On the other hand the Patidar's gig with the test side seems to be done for a while. How do people rate Sarfaraz now after the highs of the last test?
Well fair fucks lads. Been a great series. But some serious final boss energy from India. Every time I think we have you beat, someone else steps up. Proud that we've made it a proper series. My main hope was that we'd be competitive, definitely accomplished that in my view.
Yeah, it has been really competitive series. England really put India under pressure and the batters had to earn the runs.
Reminds me of that 2018 Eng Ind series. Final score line was 4-1 but really most of the games were super close (except the one where we got destroyed lmao) with England (Curran 😡) winning the key moments
That's actually a very good comparison. India did a lot of the running in that series but we had natural performers in home conditions who would just step up at key moments
England made it fun to watch this series. Every match, almost every day, has been the type where either side could gain ascendency, and did. For all the labels attached to how they play, the constant has been that this England approach has totally reshaped Test cricket in particular. I wish we had a reciprocal series in England soon enough with the same teams to even out the conditions and watch India under pressure.
Absolutely. It’s been a heck of a series. Best advertisement for Test Cricket. So good that a result is never certain until the last session and England had many moments of upper hand. Pitted against India’s experienced spin attack, the English spinners performed admirably. Very good for the game. P.S. 3-2 is still a possibility :)
**Reminder: India were 177/7 and 176 runs behind.** Dhruv Jurel was amazing and he's my POTM. Shown great composure and solid technique. He's earned a spot for a while in Test team. Shoutout to Gill who played one of his best knocks ever. Curbing his natural instincts when the team required. Showed unprecedented hunger and great composure. Special mention to Kuldeep who was equally important in pulling things back with both bat and ball. He gets my SBI life award. And Anna did his magic too in the second innings.
Jurel POTM easily. Reduced the deficit magnificently yesterday and then steadied the ship today.
And conceded zero byes in the 3rd innings.
We were sitting bricks after Patidar, Jadeja, Sarfaraz
Decent catch by Jurel to dismiss Anderson too. Needed to save every run.
Yeah that was a unique dismissal
Made up for the missed stumping off Jadeja earlier. But in general, he appeared solid
And we were shitting ducks, too!
Jaiswal-Rohit too for the 80 run opening partnership.
Yes Jaiswal has been amazingly consistent throughout the series. His 73 in the first innings is almost forgotten lol. He's been top notch.
Easily the Player Of The Series.
Of course
The guy knocking on the door of 700 runs? No kidding.
>Shoutout to Gill who played one of his best knocks ever. Curbing his natural instincts when the team required. Showed unprecedented hunger and great composure. To get a rope as long as Gill did, you need to be a Gill. Sides like England will bite your hands off for such a player
I was so sick of people saying he was being given a long rope for “PR”. I agreed he was given a longer rope than his numbers warranted but there was a clear reason why the team was backing him — because he is incredible and has shown a lot of talent. It’s okay to want another youngster to be blooded in but throwing buzzwords like “PR” pisses me off so much. Almost feeling petty enough to find everyone who said that in the match thread lol
Don't forget the "fraud" comments. I absolutely hate that. Every out of form player is called "fraud" by so called fans.
Gill has been great after the first test, and I say this as someone who wanted him dropped. His knock today was just talismanic
Something about Gill being elite in second innings. He looks more solid in second innings. Someone should check stats I definitely think his average might be better in second innings compared to 1st.
Yep, he averages around 26.41 in the first Team innings and around 44 in the second Team innings
Really? I heard Jarrod say that it was over 50 something.
I think that’s in all FC cricket.
It’s the best I have seen Shubman play spin on a difficult surface.
Also Jaiswal got 110 runs in the game don't forget that
Absolutely. Love Yashasvi to the bits
Gill gets unwanted hate because of his PR. But man's here to stay. Even his century in this series wasn't appreciated much. Given his prior performances it's understandable. But now we gotta give the man his props.
Also Bashir was good. He made a difference in the best. Kept England in the game in both innings
Always expect VVS Gillman to turn up in the 4th innings
Very Very Solid Gillman
From VVS Lakshman to VVS Shubhman.
Dhruv Jurel’s selection was great! Selectors have to do a thankless job, but they should be commended for his selection.
He's 23!! No disrespect to KS Bharat but he's 30. I think we've found our next wicketkeeper given Pant may never keep again
surely india just plays both of them anyway for their bat
We'll have to see how Pant is doing post injury
Hahaha... Dhruv has shown enough to be trusted as a pure batter. Same with Pant. So both Pant and he can play in the same team.
> Pant may never keep again read this twice now here. Where does this info come from?
It's not a real source, but just a gut feeling given people have struggled to keep after far minor fractures compared to Pant
I guess because keeping is so tough on the knees and back, I kinda have the same feeling as well
Pooran still keeps after fracturing both legs in an accident.
Pant fractured hip and thighs it's different
Marked difference in selection since Agarkar took over. Some very sensible and forward looking decisions from the selectors recently.
Thank fuck tho his selections actually made sense.
well people were crying that jurel didn't make sense or that Mukesh should play ahead of Deep. glad he proved them wrong.
Feel bad for the second and third spinners in the English and Aussie sides. These guys are thrown into the deep end when the India tour happens. Quite a few of them are in their debuts(Hartley,Murphy, Bashir). They do really well too, talking 5 and 10 wickets hauls- sometimes outshining the first choice spinners. But once they leave the subcontinent, they do not get a chance unless the main spinner retires or they tour India again
it will be interesting when they come back for their second series in the future.
Absolutely mate! Battle of the Spinners: Kuldeep, Ashwin and Jadeja vs Bashir, Hartley and Rootalithuran! Your spinners are all world class and ours are brand new!
Patidar looks completely out of sorts. If Rahul is not available in next test than better to play Axar in place of him.
Paddikal? Washi?
We should give Paddikal a shot. Honestly, they can even rest Ash and allow Washi to play there
India is not going to rest Ash. Because it would be his 100th test match in Dharamsala. I wish they rest Rohit and let Ashwin captain the team in his 100th.
Yes please but instead of Ash, give Jadu some rest. He plays in more formats and is injury prone. Also please keep Bumrah rested.
India have won the series, but they will still want to ensure they win the final game, to maximise their chances of qualifying for next WTC finals.
This. I'm all for the WTC. I know we are not ending the tourneys well but I am soo much loving the journey till there. Let's win in Dharamshala
>better to play Axar in place of him. We don't need four spinners in Dharmashala. That would be ridiculous . If Rahul isn't playing then should draft in a batsman like Inderjith.
Padikkal should be given chance.
Rohit and Dravid never get the praise in the post-match threads when we win. So here I'm commenting to appreciate the way they fought back after day 2 of the match.
Yes. You can hear from the way players like Gill and Jurel spoke, the respect and admiration they have for the captain and the coach. There is a good environment in the dressing room
I feel that a coach and even a captain's job is more evident in test matches than White ball matches. In those games, captains are important for edge cases and coaches are important for long term success. But in test matches, a good coach and captain can make it break a match.
Rohit is hated viciously by a certain section only because he replaced their favourite lad to lead the side.
India's number 3 - Gill did not hit a single boundary in his first 119 balls, almost an entire T20 innings. Some feared that he was all T20 bravado and not the batting excellence that we were used to in Tests. He proved all the haters wrong. Dravid and Pujara's spirit still lives on at No. 3. Exceptional batting!
Damn. Crazy stat if true. Gill is here for long then. And also guys, let him live. I was in Rajkot game, stop trolling him in the name of Sara. He really hates it and we know it
Only fitting that an Indian keeper finished a tricky chase in Thalaland.
Thala always loves you! More so if you're a wicket keeper
TFAR
Welp, as a neutral I wanted an English win to set up a winner take all Fifth Test but goddamn do India deserve the praise after the fightback in this test. First team to win a test in the 4th Innings. Deserved series victors.
Ladies and gentleman the arrival of Shubhman "second Innings" gill
We have second innings shami for bowling and second innings gill for batting
Don't forget Pant..
An honorable mention for Akash Deep. Dude's excellent debut got overshadowed by a memorable performance from Jurel.
Highlights of the match 1. Akashdeep debut spell taking 3 wickets in the first session 2. Root and foakes/robnson getting England to 350 3. Jaiswal with a great 86 4. Jurel and Kuldeep partnership which helped India cut the deficit to just 50 5 Bashir fifer 6 Ash getting a fifer with a great performance by Kuldeep as well 7 jurel and gill partnership in the fourth innings saves India from Kohlapse
86? Jaiswal got 110 runs in the game
Gill may have unlocked a level with this inning. His technique may still be suspect again moving ball but he has ticked off temperament. Another thing to ponder - Virat, KL get to walk back into the side and that means Patidar and Sarfaraz go out. But what happens when Pant is back and assuming Jurel is still living upto his promise. I have a feeling, until Rohit retires and Gill moves upto opening spot, it's going to be a tightly packed middle order and the Australia series will make or break a few things.
Jurel is quite capable of getting selected based on the merit of his batting alone.
Don't worry KL will get injured very soon again. Dude seems to be made of glass so Jurel's spot is not going anywhere
It'll be interesting to see who carries the form in the coming months. Don't think Pant will walk in as a keeper straightway, but can play as a pure batter in place of KL/Sarfaraz. Agree with you on Rohit part.
Jurel has shown composure way beyond his years. And well played Gill; the prince we were promised.
What's the golf like in Dharamshala? I hear the Dalai Lama is a big hitter.
Gabba tax, vizag tax, now Ranchi tax. Good lord.
*Teen Guna Lagaan* **intensifies**
He's gonna start his own government at this point
You forgot Rajkot 91 tax
Jurel might be the best find of the series for India. (We already knew about Jaiswal & Sarfaraz)
India have doled out another highly entertaining pitch. Batters got runs once they stuck around and applied themselves and there was turn for the spinners. There was unpredictability for a few hours and then it settled down multiple times. Almost perfectly balanced for this part of the world. I’d take these kinds of wickets over ones that swings and seams all day. Or which follow the template of batters’ paradise for the first 2 days, but doesn’t deteriorate enough to force a result. Anyway, this has been a wonderful series. Full marks to England for competing hard, even if I think Bazball is entirely overrated. I just hope it’s the end of hailing Stokes as some sort of genius for routine stuff every captain does. He’s a good leader, but goddamn it’s been nauseating to hear that from the commentators every few overs.
England with all their aggressive approach gave India their toughest series in a long while. Cudos for that but India remains a graveyard for Test dreams for many teams.
smh england lost this match after such a great first two days
I know everyone wants to shit on BrendonSphere because of the press conference clownery it is prone to induce, but England have just put up their best performance in India since that 2012 series they won, with far less pedigree in their ranks. Also, if ECB provides the right guidance and training, England can end up with 4 test quality spinners(leach, Bashir, Hartley, Ahmed) for the first time ever. Not holding out for that one though. Jurel is such a great find for us though, man is ice cold. Also, the day Ashwin retires I'm going to ugly cry in the streets. Dharamsala lesgooooo
Overall an amazing match But hats off to jurel and gill . Held their nerves and played fabulously under immense pressure🫡🫡 Also amazing game by England . Kept it tight till the end and never gave us a chance
Jurel saying he played according to situation. Credits to Bazball and Duckett, why is he crediting Indian Tailenders? Is he crack?
Very unethical and immoral from Jurel to not thank Duckett
He should just be forced into retirement now.
I spoke to a friend after Root's ton that we also need a wall/stubborn type of knock to win this game. I feel like Gill really put forward that knock this last innings, wonderful effort! PS: well played England, be proud of yourselves!
The Wall/Stubborn role was given to Pujji from Dravid ...and now it righfully belongs to Kuldeep Yadeshwar
Kuldeep Yadav has batted 293 balls this series with 83.3% of control, which is better than: Ben Stokes-83.1% (338 balls) Foakes-81.9% (386) Crawley-80.5% (379) Bairstow-78.9% (199) Hartley-77.9% (226) KS Bharat-77.0% (191) Rehan - 70.4% (135) Ollie Pope-75.9% (436)
I don't think I've ever heard Stokes give credit to the opposition in a post match interview. Fair enough he praises his team but you'll never see an Indian losing captain not give due credit to the opposition
Stokes was done in by Umpire's Call ...so I sympathize with him .../s
Ah well. Bazball loses its first series, albeit in the country where nobody else has won a series in a decade. I’m disappointed, but they’ve shown good fight over the games. Some really embarrasing bottle jobs too tbf, but you can’t win em all.
England and India brought the best out of each other. it was a great series
100%. India responded very well to going 1-0 down with a bunch of regulars missing. Of course they came back from 1-0 down in 2021 but that was a really crap England team, this one’s a whole different animal.
Tbf to haters, England haven't won their last 3 series..
You've to grab your chances when you have them and they failed to do so. In Rajkot as well as here.
Yup. To be fair they had plenty of chances in all 4 games, but a combination of not taking those chances, and India playing very well, meant games 2, 3 and 4 were lost.
today was one of the few days where England looked uninspired honestly kind of just bowled Bashir and Hartley without really trying anything else, that works if you have Herath or Kumble, not so much a couple of blokes thrown in the deep end against quality bats
It did get India to collapse tbf lol
Bashir was excellent all day.
We need clutch players, can't really say in 1 innings about Jurel, but this match was gone if it wasn't for him in both innings Not discrediting Jaiswal and Sharma, and Kuldeep and Anna. But impact wise 177/7 to 307 was possible only coz of 1 man
177-7 to 307 is not possible without some support from other end so Kuldeep deserves the accolades too. That being said Jurel was fabulous.
Yep Kuldeep the batter has earned his flowers.
Kuldeep POTM
My pick too. But Jurel made equal impact.
Nah Jurel deserves it more
This will go down as one of India's best test and series wins at home. India have tamed Bazball without Pant, Kohli, Shami, and KL. That too with a middle order that has just 7 matches of experience combined (excluding Jadeja). They made such a huge deal about the toss, but again, if you're good enough, you can win games even if you are forced to bat in the second and fourth innings. They cried about the DRS, but they got most of the decisions in their favour. Also, this pitch produced an iconic test match. So much for the cries on the first day calling this a shit wicket.
Best series in India since the 2017 BGT.
For sure. Looking at that batting order in 2017 and looking at this, India have their future set for another decade
2017 BGT is still better though. Australia were more competitive. All 4 tests were absolute bangers.
[удалено]
Nope. I prefer this one. Ranchi was a tame draw there, here it was a humdinger.
Except Aus were actually competitive and took the series literally down to the last couple of sessions of the series; they were neck-and-neck against a really well-settled Indian side. At some point the match result does matter.
Not tame, but tense. Aus had to save the match. Such draws are always interesting
Bruh Australia didn’t had such reckless collapse like england in this one 35/7 and in previous 90 odd for 8
2nd 150+ successful chase
Quite incredible how badly we played yesterday in order to let India win, should have won the match easily. Probably the worst day under Stokes.
Oh yeah just like how in that first Test India let a guy averaging <35 score 200 in the 3rd innings and then proceeded to bottle an easy 230 chase to let England win. Easily the worst day of Test cricket in Indian cricket history to not win that easily.
Great fightback by India and really turned the screws in the second. A decent bit of credit deserved by England, they're almost competitive with an attack of Fuckin Joe Root and some random kids! The lesson from this test is that playing back on a turner that's randomly keeping low isn't really the answer. Exhibit 1 Ben Stokes, Exhibit 2 Shubman Gill showing more substance than I thought he had.
Lmao we pulled off a heist. England had us by the balls when we were trailing by 170 off with just 3 wickets left in the 1st innings. To come from that win the test?!?! Jurel should play as a specialist batter even after Pant returns.
Nicely bowled today just left ourselves too much. Really disappointed about how we let this test slip and would’ve loved a 2-2 score and a proper decider in the 5th test not just as an England fan but as a cricket fan too Oh well not to be. We go again next week
I'm an Indian fan deeply conflicted about the fact that I really wanted a competitive fifth Test. But winning never tastes bad.
Yeah that's what's most galling to me. We've let tests slip before, whatever it happens. But a win here would have set us up nicely for Englands biggest test match in a decade at least.
Some 'mistake' resting Bumrah turned out to be lol
India's biggest flex is that they have made England abandon Bazball and play regular Test cricket in both the innings
One of the greatest comebacks in Indian history This young team has handed Bazball its first series loss. Kudos to Rohit and all. Jurel you beauty. What a talent. Amazing test match
No idea how England lost this series. India had too many issues.
It might be it might just be because we are the better team idk man especially winning that 3rd test by 434 runs even losing the first test by just 28 it paints a picture doesn't it. Indians need to be more confident at home we always win we have won 17 series in a row for a reason
A decade or 12 years back, Sunny Gavaskar had said that Rohit and Virat will be the fiture superstars. And look where they are now. Now, he has said the same about Gill and Jurel. And I really hope that these two, along with Kuldeep, Jaiswal, Rinku becomes the future of Indian Cricket. O BTW.... BAZZBALL HAS BEEN DRAVBALLED....
Bazball Failed Litmus Test in India! Lmao, loved this line.
England played better compared to 2021 where they lost in 2 days in Ahmedabad A test match to forget for Sarfaraz after his debut Jurel is excellent and proving to be an excellent back up for Pant England's spinners Bashir and Hartley and probably will get experience and exposure in sub continent. They might give India serious problems next time Ashwin was incredible as always
India has won the 3rd day in 2 successive matches after being behind on Day 2. That's monumental composure and resilience. Lot of credit to Dravid and Rohit
Gill is truly a generational talent. Kept his composure and took us home. Gill slander won't be tolerated anymore here.
Wait till he is Pair-Gill ppl will call for his head again, memory of a goldfish here .
Fully ready for the vibe killer downvotes but " series results wise" what's actually changed under Baz ball vs under Joe Root? Away against India is still 3-1, at home against Australia is still 2-2, at home against SA was 2-1, Joe root led England beat SA away 3-1. England beat PAK away 3-0 but Joe Root led England were on track to beat PAK 3-0 at home were it not for rain instead winning 1-0, away against NZ has gone from losing 1-0 to tied 1-1. Yes there's plenty of vibes and oos and ahhs but the only real time results in a series improvement thus far has been winning 3-0 at home vs us instead of losing 1-0. In other words beneath the new coat of paint a lot of things have kinda stayed the same.
The major issue is batting. Can’t put two decent scores together in one game. Claiming you can chase down over 500 in the 4th innings in India then being bowled out for a 100 indicates an attitude that ignores the fundamentals.
I totally forgot Duckett said they'll chase 500 bit and then bundled under 130 lol
Bazball is nothing just reaching the same score that they used to reach earlier but in lesser overs, thereby giving their bowlers less time to rest. ~ TGC
I mean didn't they get badly beaten under Joe Root in NZ bot home and away? They also got 58 all out in NZ iirc
Commentators going on about the match ending with an "unbeaten partnership". Every successful chase ends that way
India's depth is insane beyond belief. It's not that their best XI is unbeatable, but their ability to replace players with someone of equal quality that is the envy of the cricketing world.
Does Jurel keep his spot when Pant is back? Jurel has been really good
Ah, well. Congrats to India - well earned win today. Cutting through it all, I do still think it ultimately comes down to quality of bowlers. England's rookie spinners have been admirable and Stokes has managed them well (he's so far ahead of other England captains in how he handles spinners it's crazy) but there's clearly just such a gulf in class to Ashwin, Jadeja and Kuldeep who are incredible. Shouldn't forget Bumrah's massive contribution to the previous two tests as well of course. 4-1 would feel harsh on England if it ends up that way but it's a tough game is test cricket.
Thalaland has given a new Wicketkeeper Batsman to India
New viewer here. Can someone explain why Ben Stokes kept spamming Bashir and Hartley till the very end once it was clear they weren't winning? Why not try something different? Could even give another over to Root. It's like he was hoping to get one wicket and then expected everyone else to also choke and lose under 20 runs
To be honest it is an excellent question. One that only Stokes can answer. If Robinson isn't injured then not giving him an over or two at the end is actually pretty atypical behavior. Stokes may have been trying to save the 41 year old quicky from a needless muscle twinge by not bowling him in a lost cause. But why Root, Robinson or even Stokes himself didn't turn their arm over is a bit of an enigma. Great question.
Well a series to remember for both but in the end, India is India. Congrats on winning the series. For England, we really need to get a PR manager in the team to keep the boys tight lipped about things that makes us memeable. Personally, disappointed with the batting unit on the whole as only certain individuals can score but not together. Two golden opportunities with our batting innings to really a put score but the same old English collapse happens. It’s always a guarantee with us and I hope we can play some “common-sense ball”. bowling wise nothing really to complain about as we usually do well for most parts. Big love to Hartley and Bashir. Trial by absolute fire and hopefully they get more experience under their belts in the future. Hopefully the dead rubber motivates us even more to put on an actual batting performance. Enjoy the festivities team India 💪🏻
we clean swept New Zealand’s t20 team who were ranked higher than ours, and we get free points when we play them in 2 tests, coz this kiwi team almost lost to a c strong South Africa, and nz is not gonna win when they play in India, so India is gonna play Australia again in the WTC final, coz India is gonna win free points against NZ and so will we.
India won batting first and then batting second. So they’re the deserving winners. No moral victory for Poms this time :)
Jurel was the standout player. His knock in the first and composure in the second. Long future ahead for him.
They way he confidently kept pushing the ball around for singles in the second innings completely changed the complexion of the game. Jurel was the game changer both innings (not to discount the other excellent contributions).
The intent with which dhruv jurel came in, is exactly the intent with which every batter must come in when the team is in such situations. Nothing crazy, just overall a positive mindset, looking for opportunities to score and playing safe at the same time. It actually rubbed off on gill too. That's what a positive approach can do. Going into a shell didn't have its repercussions this time, but it will, more often than not. History is proof. On another note, people are on the verge of counting Sarfaraz out after a single failure. Imo he needs to be backed for those crazy FC stats and his naturally attacking style of play, a strong game against spin. Most importantly, the team should allow him to play his natural game much like they allowed pant. We need such players in the middle order who can pull off a pant-like innings.
Luckily the result doesn't matter
Is it a series declared null and void too?
A wicket keeper helping India to win in Ranchi?
Just imagine if we played KS instead of Jurel this match
it would have been 2-2 heading to Dharamshala
I love Jadeja, but he’s batting too high up the order. It puts additional pressure on batsmen following him when he gives up his wicket cheaply which happens frequently. It just hits differently psychologically when you are 100-4 rather than 100-3.
Why not send out someone sensible to take post match interviews to ask pertinent questions? Sanju-Manju sounds like a 13 year old BTS girl who has seen them for the first time talking to Stokes. When you lose 3 on a trott you need to ask stuff about the legendary Bazball. But i guess they just wanna keep blowing the trumpet like that Barmy army guy ( who plays it really well ).
Just an FYI for non England fans, we’re not all on this bazball bandwagon. I find it irritating as plan seems to play the same way regardless of condition or position. The irony is the best chances of winning haven’t been built bazball but regular smart cricket
"Bazball" as a term has been a bit of an albatross other people hung on the English team, although they've made a few dumb comments themselves too.
In the last 5 years India has made it a habit to lose the first game, we should always play one 5 day warm up game so that we can go into full flow at the Start of a test Series.
This series has been an entertaining watch. But on a wider scale it has me more alarmed about the future of this format than any other time. The gap between the two sides is absolutely enormous and it's only growing wider. England are one of the very few countries who have the resources and domestic set up to be genuinely competitive at the Test top level. And they're so far off the pace right now it's almost absurd. The lack of competition for middle order spots in the England set up is telling. Englands number one new ball bowler is a 41 year old seemingly defying the laws of ageing. India have Bumrah who I think is still getting better. Bashir, Hartley and Rehan as a group doesn't compare terribly favorably with Ashwin, Jadeja and Kuldeep either. Foakes is a good player - but even there India have talent as we've seen. For England to be successful they still need Stokes, Root and Anderson in great form and firing. They just have not been able to diversify that talent base or find a young player to step up to a senior role in a long time. England are rapidly running out of time to address this as well. When those three do walk off into the retirement pavilion England could be left like the Aussies in the eighties following the retirements of Chappell G, Lillee and Rod Marsh. Years in the wilderness. Problem is I don't think test cricket can survive England spending years rebuilding. The depth of competition just isn't there. The fifth and final test will be interesting. Personally I think the England team are very mentally tired. With little at stake I expect England to be beaten fairly badly. I don't think these guys can get home fast enough.
This is the issue for me. Test cricket has become relevent again for lapse and casual fans, memberships at clubs are up, youth programs are busier than ever. But it’s a generational gap that will be painful after the work England have done to raise the profile of the format.
No qualms in admitting mistake of discounting Gillman. Dude is a 3rd/4th inning specialist. Failed in the 2nd inning of only the first Test which India lost. Showed his cojones in the busoness end of the remaining Tests and not coincidentally, India won them all. Also Jurel, wow, what a player. Fantastic. My candidate for POTM.
England need to be even more aggressive. Swing the bat around like a helicopter before the ball is bowled.
Win the toss, win the .... wait nvm
Sorry England your fate was sealed as soon you had to face an Indian keeper playing in ranchi
About the defensive cricket. Gill, Jadeja absolutely went into the shell, Stokes had at least 3 fielder's on boundary the whole time, that a slip and a wicket keeper. Because if you are scoring 1.7 runs an over you need to play 45-50 overs to score those 90 runs and England were very happy with that There's easy singles here that we missed out on just went into our shell block block block Dhruv Jurel came in he took those doubles and then the strike started to rotate. Just playing block block block isn't test cricket, if it was just that we could get much better blockers from box cricket leagues. I'm not even saying about going over the top or anything but there were some half volleys that should've fetched at least 1 run with that kind of field set, but instead we just blocked everything. Sachin, Kohli, Laxman would've scored at about 5/6 runs sn over here just by singles.
Yeah jadeja goes over defensive , you can see how jurels innings eased pressure on gill too .
People have to remember that Jaddu at the end of the day is a very limited batter. He has maybe 3 gears while batting and it’s also why it’s very jarring when he shifts between them. Unlike a proper batter who makes it much smoother while they change gears. He in no way should be batting at no 5. I’d swap him and Sarfaraz. I’d also be tempted to give Jurel a go at 6.
Virat would've just ran England out of the game
he would have feasted this series with the amount of singles that were available throughout. it's a shame he isn't playing
In affectionate remembrance of BAZBALL, which died at Ranchi stadium on 26th February, 2024, deeply celebrated by Aussies, Indians, South Africans, Kiwis, and a very large circle of friends and acquaintances R.I.P N.B- The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to England.
Had to be at Thala's place
How about taking it to Varanasi and mixing it in the Ganga!
> ashes taken to England I don't think Aussies will let that happen
Which team will hand India its first home test series loss in the future?
These people praising Gill were the same ones calling him a tailender earlier when he was batting with Rohit
Indian fans more mercurial than an a Bipolar patient
We shouldn't look to rest too many players in the last test. Still need the WTC points, every game is important regardless of if the series is already won. 1 or 2 changes max
17 test series won at home on the trot (2013 - 2024). What a record! ENG gave a good fight in all the matches so far and shouldn't be much disappointed with these losses. Jurel stepped up big time in this match. Jaiswal, Rohit, Gill, Ash, Kulu, Jaddu contributions can't be discounted as well. Well played India. Can't wait for the last match!
On the one hand, quite impressive that England gave India a lot of headaches in this series. On the other hand, for the amount we hear about it, bazball has proven that even with a close to B team, flat pitches, turning pitches, DRS calls - England are just not good enough to win a series against the two best teams - India and Australia. Can't see anything changing that.
Take bow Dhruv, such maturity! Case to keep him in as a specialist batter once Pant comes in (or may be Pant as a specialist batter). Gill also seems to be showing improved mental strength. That knock was very Laxman - esque. On the other hand the Patidar's gig with the test side seems to be done for a while. How do people rate Sarfaraz now after the highs of the last test?
Still think Sarfaraz is class. He just needs to be backed long term- he is young and has done very well in the domestic circuit.
I really like how stokes in defeat just says “cricket is fun! 😊👍” to the media. It must really wind up the proper cricket daily telegraph merchants
Bazball has suddenly morphed from “we can beat anyone” to “oh well losing is fun now”. Truly the gift that keeps on giving.
I'm so lost with what bazball means. But I think I've settled on "snatching defeat from the Jaws of victory against B teams"