India skipper Virat Kohli has been known for playing his game with all the passion and wearing his heart on his sleeves and all of that were on display in abundance in the second Test against England at Lord’s.
There was no let-up from either him or his bowlers in the second innings of the hosts that did not last more than 52 overs on a fiercely intense final day. India were under pressure coming into the final day and were rescued only by a marathon partnership between Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami.
England players had not forgiven Bumrah for subjecting James Anderson to fierce over of fast bowling where he had asked the height and mental fortitude of the ace pacer. He had bowled short balls to Anderson on the third day and there were verbal altercations between the pacer and Indian players after they were walking off to the pavilion.
England’s most rapid pacer in the game Mark Wood was tasked to rattle Bumrah as he came out to bat on the final day when India were under enormous pressure and he was on cue to hit the Indian pacer on his head. It was followed by the hosts, especially, Anderson himself and Jos Buttler choosing to engage in a verbal battle with him.
Verbal attack charged Bumrah and he replied Wood with a four through the off side that attracted an animated signal from Kohli, who was grasping a heated moment his pacer was subjected to in the middle from the iconic Lord’s balcony.
Kohli must have been aware of the need for runs before giving the hosts the taste of their own medicine and the partnership between Shami and Bumrah provided him with that luxury.
Looking back on those moments from the Lord’s Test, Kohli reiterated that the win was “satisfying” as the team took on the challenge after the verbal duel on the final day. He said that India have shed those behaviours of letting their opposition treat them lightly and they will not “take a backward step when provoked”
He said the Indian players have the “belief to beat any team in the world” while refusing to divulge the details of what turned out to be provoking for his side on the final day. The skipper said that those sort of on-field moments have always inspired his players and it will continue to do so in the future.
"It was very satisfying after what transpired on the morning of day five. This team is not going to take a backward step when provoked. We play together and we play to win. We don’t let any opposition take us lightly and keep reminding them that we are always going to compete and find ways to win games. It is our belief that we can beat any team in the world,” Kohli said in the pre-match press conference.
"I think I cannot give you the details of the words that were spoken. I think it is for the cameras and the stump mics to pick for both teams equally and then be analysed. What's said on the field, what's done in the moment, gives you extra motivation to get together as a team even more strongly. Then there is absolute clarity as to what you need to do.”
India adopted a four pacer plus one spinner tactic while selecting playing XI in the first Test and as they were on the verge of success at Trent Bridge, Kohli had hinted of playing with the same “template”. However, the cohesive factor of that template—Shardul Thakur’s swing bowling and batting ability went missing in the next game as the pacer suffered an injury.
The injury to Shardul would have forced Kohli to walk back from his template but he chose to go in at the Lord’s with a far more aggressive option of playing Ishant Sharma albeit it meant a thin batting lineup while the middle order was struggling for runs. The move paid dividends as India’s quartet of pacers kept running in and asked England batsmen a lot of tough questions throughout the end.
He commended the bowling attack for delivering and hinting at no need to change the playing XI after the triumph of Lord’s. However, he was not left from the question of Ravichandran Ashwin, who has been warming the benches so far on the tour.
He did not rule out the inclusion of Ashwin and instead increased that prospect by sharing his surprise over the lack of grass on the Headingley pitch and saying the playing XI will be decided based on the expected nature of the pitch from the third day onwards. What may also tilt the balance in favour of the off-spinner is the presence of four left-handers—Rory Burns, Dawid Malan, Moeen Ali, and Sam Curran, in the top seven batting position of the hosts.
“We have no reason to change anything unless people have niggles, which we haven’t encountered since the last Test. You usually don’t want to disturb the winning combination. We don’t have any reason to change the winning combination especially when the team has achieved in the last match. The bowling department has delivered,” Kohli said.
“As far as Ashwin playing is concerned, we were quite surprised to see the pitch at Headingley the way it was. I thought there would be more grass on the pitch. It would be more spicy and lively but that was not the case. Anything is possible, we always name a 12, and then on the day we have a look at the pitch and what it could become on Day 3 and 4, and accordingly, we will go in with the right combination.”
India’s middle-order struggled for runs except for the last innings at Lord’s when Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane set up a perfect platform with a hundred run partnership. The hosts have been saved by impressive batting by both Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul at the top of the order although they have batted on the first day of both Tests when conditions were heavily stacked in favour of bowlers.
Kohli commended the “outstanding” partnership of Rohit and Rahul said that their batting has been a “big boost” for Team India so far. The duo has added one 100-run and one 97-run partnership so far in the two Tests of the series and if India are to win the five-match series for the first time since 2007 their dream run with the bat needs to continue for a bit longer.
“When we play overseas, one of the most important factors is the opening combination. The way KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma have played is outstanding. We hope that they continue in the same manner so that they set up the right platform. It’s a big boost for us,” Kohli said.
India will have to be careful of not letting this advantage slip from their hands at Headingley. The hosts are under tremendous pressure after a debacle at Lord’s and if they can put more pressure on them in the third Test, the writing will be on the wall for the hosts in absence of Ben Stokes, Stuart Broad and also Anderson, who will not play all the five Tests of the series.