WHY TEST CRICKET ROCKS!!!

                                                                       If you like history,tune yourself into the rosy past of 19th century and imagine yourself to be one of them,who wore white clothes and played a game using a red cherry and a wooden timber.Yes,the origin of the game traces to way back in 19th century,when white people played the game in their leisure time.No one then would have  ever thought that this game will come so far,but from Timeless Test matches to T20 Cricket,it has evolved and successfully completed 130 years of it's existence.But, even after so many years and in spite of fast moving world,Test Cricket still fascinates one and all and the reasons for it are:

Test Cricket of 1880's

(1)The Conditions,the Toss and Team Combination:-

   The conditions play a very crucial role as far as Test Cricket is concerned.The conditions include the state of pitch and atmospheric conditions viz sunny,overcast and so on.Just as conditions play a very huge role,toss too has an overall impact on the end result of the Test match.When a certain captain wins the toss,he has to assess the conditions before taking any decision as his decision can benefit his team a great deal on the first morning itself.Imagine,a captain opts to field after winning the toss and his bowlers respond with five wickets in morning session itself.In such a scenario,bowling team is clearly in the driver's seat.But now considering the negative side of it,suppose his decision is backfired and opposition team piles on the runs in first innings,then,indeed the advantage of winning the toss is lost and bowling team may remain under pressure during the course of the match.Thus,this indicates that toss factor depending upon the conditions has a big part to play in Test Cricket unlike limited overs cricket where conditions predominantly remain the same throughout the match.Similarly,the 22-yard pitch undergoes a lot of change throughout the course of five match days and players need to be efficient enough to cope up with it.The sun,the cloud cover,the rain all have an impact on the nature of the pitch.Moreover,the wicket deteriorates as the time progresses.Moving our attention from the pitch to team combinations,the term 'Specialist' is significant in Test Cricket and not 'all-rounder' which has a higher value in limited overs cricket.Save some names,all-rounders don't fit into the scheme of things when it comes to Test Cricket and always 'Specialists' are given importance.Wicket-Keeping is no mean job in Test Cricket and always well-trained,professional wicket-keepers are given preference.Specialist wicket-keepers are highly respected when it comes to Test Cricket and their performance behind the stumps has it's own impact on the end result.Thus no push-overs are entertained for wicket-keeping unlike what is being done in limited overs cricket.

(2)Batting:-

 Gavaskar-pillar of Concentration

    "Give the first hour to the bowlers and next five hours will be yours"-the quote by legendary batsman Sunil Gavaskar is indeed apt as far as batting in Test Cricket is concerned.Batting in Test Cricket demands immense level of concentration,determination,patience,passion and temperament.You have to play each ball according to it's merit and there are no easy runs.With a sporting pitch,good bowlers,long boundaries and no restrictions on field and number of overs a bowler can bowl,it is a test of your character as a batsman.As a batsman,you should have perseverance and hunger to combat difficult situations where runs are hard to come by and when you are on the back foot.The next major challenge for a Test batsman is to be able to bat in all conditions and against different and diverse bowling attacks.Traditionally,the batsmen from sub-continent find it hard to perform in fast,bouncy and swinging conditions while batsmen from England,Australia and South Africa don't deliver the goods when they play spin on the turning tracks.

Richards-Fight fire with fire

Thus,in order to succeed at the highest level,you should be technically solid and temperamentally sound and you should be clever enough to fine tune your technique to suit the given conditions and given bowling attack.Only those batsmen who can play well in foreign conditions are regarded as good batsmen and for that ,you must be well equipped and efficient in all respects.Thus,all these qualities makes the Test batsman a class apart as compared to batsmen in limited overs cricket where the conditions are tailor-made for batting.

(3)Bowling:-
    Who says Cricket is a batsman's game? you can't win a Test match unless you take those 20 wickets.The above sentence itself describes the importance of a bowling unit in Test Cricket.Main challenge for a bowler in Test Cricket is to keep himself fit ,energetic and enthusiastic as he has to bowl long spells.An another important thing is to have that intent going on and the bowler should be able to give his 100% every time he bowls.The major difference between Test Cricket and limited overs Cricket is that,there is no contention-like thing in Test Cricket and you have to look for taking wickets all the time.

West Indies Pace Battery of 1980's-Roberts,Holding,Croft,Garner

An ordinary bowler may come good in ODI's,but he will be completely exposed and severely punished in Test Cricket.As a Test bowler,patience is the key to success and you must stick to your basics.Bowlers should not get frustrated when the things aren't going their away and must adhere to their line and length and must continue to execute their plans.Only,the proper Test bowlers have a high success rate and any emerging bowler must try to make himself a proper Test bowler .He must develop himself so as to be able to take wickets at any point of time,irrespective of the conditions and the quality of the batsman.As far as fast bowler is concerned,he must be equipped with all the armoury like swing,reverse swing and must be clever enough to use the old ball as well.Moreover,there are no easy wickets for bowlers in Tests as batsmen are more conservative and avoid playing rash strokes.Thus,bowlers must bend their backs and produce wicket taking deliveries so as to break the defenses of well-set batsmen.Hence,all the above description clearly indicates how rigorous the bowling can be in Test Cricket and it speaks about enormous talent and will-power that a bowler must possess to succeed at the Test level.

                                                                    Nasty Stuff

(4)Captaincy,Coaching and Support Staff:-
     "Captaincy is 90% luck and 10% skill ,but never ever try it if you don't have 10% skill"- a quote by Richie Benaud is indeed apt.Captaincy,especially in Test Cricket is challenging,because as a captain,you must be proactive and the decisions on and off-the field have a great impact on the end result.In Tests,you can't play a waiting game for too long and captain-as a leader of the team must make things happen.Many a times,during long hours on the field,fielders start dropping their shoulders and captain,in such a scenario should inspire his team-mates and rejuvenate them with a new hope.After a heavy loss,captain has to accept it's responsibility and then he has to shoulder a bigger responsibility of rebuilding and reorganizing his team and we all know how difficult it is to bounce back after a Test match or a series loss.Moreover,coach and captain have to formulate plans before entering into a Test match and captain has to manage his troops so that the pre-planned operations are executed.You know,a lot of planning goes into the Test match with planning of dismissals and forming and defining new strategies,singling out each and every opposition player and coach is the man in charge to do so.Also,coach has to ensure that all his players do the homework well and are clear with a definite approach towards the Test match.

                                                                             The other major factor that players have to come across in a Test match is mental ability.In this regard,members of support staff play an integral role.Test Cricket is a hard game which not only drains you physically but also mentally and you should be mentally strong to deliver the goods.During anxious moments,it is more of a battle of nerves than between bat and ball.Thus,as a Test Cricketer,mental toughness is what you must possess to become successful.It is a true Test of your character.

                                                                               Finally,from my perspective,Test Cricket resembles Life.Just as our life,Test Cricket has longevity and Test Cricket offers various challenges at different instants of time throughout the course of five match days.You have to go through all those rigorous moments,disciplinary drills,painful setbacks,emotional occasions and then,ultimately,you are bestowed with success and in the midst of all this,your true character is at stake.All such situations are indeed analogous to real life challenges and this is the reason why TEST CRICKET ROCKS!!!
*LONG LIVE TEST CRICKET*
                                                                            
                                                                       

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series Eng Vs Ind 1st Test,TrentBridge,Nottingham 9-13 July 2014

 Day One

Captains unveil the Investec Trophy before the start of the match

                                                    Start of 5 match Test series,another overseas tour for M S Dhoni and co.,a new team,completely fresh outlook,can all these reverse the fortunes of Indian team away from home was the big question hovering in the minds of millions of Indians.First job done by the captain,he won the toss and India are batting.After a cheeky start,the opening duo of India in the form of Vijay and Dhawan looked relatively settled as all the early nerves had calmed down.But,you can't keep Anderson out of the game for too long as he drew first blood by dismissing Dhawan. Prior took a flying catch as Anderson celebrated his 50th test wicket at Trent Bridge.Pujara walked in as he and Vijay batted beautifully to take India to a commendable score of 106/1 at lunch.

                                                                               But,if it was India's batting that made a lot of talking in the morning session,then it was England's bowling that dominated the post-lunch session.India from being one down were reduced to three down with barely few runs added on the board within minutes in the afternoon session.Bell took a brilliant catch at short mid-on to get rid of pujara off Jimmy Anderson's bowling and Broad accounted for Kohli's dismissal.Rahane,who walked in at No.5 steadied the ship in company of Vijay as hosts rolled down a number of maiden overs.Both Vijay and Rahane played with lot of composure and patience,playing each ball on it's merit and went into tea unconquered.

                                                                             Just as lunch break yielded England double break-through,Tea break brought the downfall of Rahane who failed to keep down Plunkett's rising delivery.With India playing only five specialist batsman,Dhoni came at No.6 to join Vijay,who by now was in nervous nineties.After being stranded on  99 for quite a while,Vijay finally completed his 4th Test hundred and got a warm reception from nearly a full-house Nottingham crowd.Vijay's knock was solid in temperament,determination and patience and made full use of good batting conditions.Dhoni,too,looked good and was determined to prove his critics wrong.Just before the close of play on Day 1,Dhoni got to his half century off just 64 balls ,a brisk one in the context of the proceedings.England bowlers failed to get a wicket after Rahane's dismissal in the evening session on a placid pitch as India ended the day on a high.

First day first show-Vijay scores a brilliant hundred

SCORE:

INDIA 259/4

Stumps,Day 1.

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,End Vs Ind,1st Test,TrentBridge,Nottingham,9-13 July 2014

                                               Day Two

                                                               With a great day in the office for Indians on day one,it was time to consolidate on day 2.With no specialist batsman to follow,both Dhoni and Vijay played cautiously knowing the importance of their partnership.They survived the first hour without any damage done and in the meanwhile, Vijay was nearing his personal milestone of 150.But,his 150 was not to be as Anderson trapped him LBW for a fantastic 146 immediately after drinks on second morning.Vijay was Anderson's third scalp of the innings.Jadeja joined Dhoni and batted aggressively to put India into driver's seat going into lunch on day two.

England boys celebrate the dismissal of Vijay

                                                               Second session though brought cheers back on English faces as 4 wickets tumbled in space of just two runs.Jadeja edged one to Prior,Dhoni was run out trying to take an unnecessary single,debutant Stuart Binny returned to the pavilion for just a single and Ishant was clueless about Broad delivery that castled his timber.Score was 346/9 when last wicket partnership of B Kumar and M Shami came together and what followed then brought back the memories of exactly an year earlier when Australian 11th wicket partnership of A Agar and P Hughes had put on 163 and made English bowlers toil hard at the same venue.B Kumar and M Shami batted with resolution and courage and played ball after ball,over after over.The duo frustrated the English bowlers as both of them were not willing to throw their wickets away.Both of them added 111 runs for the last wicket as they batted for 38 long overs spanning for about two and half hours.In the process,both of them completed their half centuries and when Kumar finally fell to M Ali for 58,they had stretched the India's total to 457.

B Kumar and M Shami shared a 111-run stand

for the last wicket

                                                             After that fabulous partnership.pressure was back on England as their tired looking opening pair made it's way to the centre .Cook,especially was under enormous pressure to perform and he succumbed to the pressure yet again as he was clean bowled by Shami for mere 5 runs.It was a crucial breakthrough from India's point of view but following that England survived the remainder of the day without any further scare with Robson and Ballance being the not out batsmen.

SCORE:

INDIA 457

ENGLAND 43/1

Stumps,Day 2.

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,Eng Vs Ind,1st Test,TrentBridge,Nottingham,9-13 July 2014

                                                   Day Three                 

                                                                          The overnight batsman Robson and Ballance resumed the proceedings for England on Day 3.It was vital for England not to lose early wickets in the morning session as it would have given India an early advantage.Robson and Ballance played cautiously and though their scoring rate was just above 2 runs per over in the first hour of play,they were occupying the crease and it was important for their team's cause.Both of them played out the entire session as Indian bowlers failed to make any inroads into the English batting line-up.

                                                                           They say Cricket is a funny game and it was again evident in that afternoon session.It turned out to be a fantastic session of Test Cricket as a flat,placid pitch showered some blessings on seamers as 6 English wickets fell for just 74 runs.Ishant Sharma was at his best as he got Ballance and Robson trapped in front of their stumps in the space of 20 deliveries.Ishant bowled with good pace and fantastic line and length as ball made a lot of talking in that passage of play.Ishant was steaming in and danger man Ian Bell was his third scalp.Bell poked at a wide delivery away from his body as faintest of faint edge landed safely into Dhoni's gloves.M Ali joined Root at the crease and responsibility of steadying the England innings rested on their shoulders after triple strike from Sharma shook England.But it was not to be as M Ali was deceived by the slow and low nature of the pitch as the short ball from Shami didn't bounce as he anticipated and he was guilty of taking eyes off the ball and the ball after hitting his gloves loomed up in the air and easy catch was taken in slip cordon to bring down curtains on his short stay at the crease.Prior,the wicket-keeper batsman wa the next man in and was dubiously given out by umpire as replays clearly showed daylight between bat and ball.Stokes,came in at No.8 with barely 15 minutes to Tea but even he didn't last long as his wicket was like icing on the cake for Indians.It was a remarkable session not only from India's point of view but also in the context of the match as the match which was going nowhere at Lunch suddenly got momentum and Indians were in a position of strength at Tea interval.

Ishant is ecstatic after dismissing Ian Bell

Broad punishes India with a defiant 47

                                                                        The Tea interval gave English batsman time to think and rethink their strategies as the duo of Root and Broad came out with a clear mind and positive intent in the evening session.Broad,in particular ,came out with all guns blazing as he didn't miss out on a single opportunity to score.England who were crawling at 205/7 at Tea time scored quickly and reached 250 within 45 minutes of play in the evening session.They overhauled their first target ,258 i.e they avoided the follow-on and the inception of new ball brought runs thick and fast for England.Broad was finally dismissed just 3 short of what could have been a fabulous half century but by then he had done his job and certainly saved England from deep waters.After dismissing Prior,Stokes and Broad ,B Kumar also accounted for plunkett as England's score read 298/9 still trailing India by 159 runs.The No.11,Anderson joined defiant Root and it was important for India to close out on England innings as early as possible.But poor tactics from Dhoni meant Root shielded Anderson over after over for the first four balls of the over and leaving the remaining two balls for the latter to negotiate.These defensive tactics worked perfectly for England as Root and Anderson stretched the English total past 350 at the close of play on Day 3 without being conquered.

 Root consolidates with a gritty half-century

Score:

India 457

England 352/9

Stumps,Day 3

Pataudi Trophy/Investic Test Seies,Eng Vs Ind,1st Test,Trent Bridge,Nottingham,July 9-13 2014

                                                                       Day Four

                                                                              Being denied of the last wicket on Day 3,Indians hoped to end English innings as early as possible on 4th morning.But just as last Indian wicket was not willing to give up,Root and Anderson too dig it deep and continued to frustrate Indian bowlers on fourth day morning.Anderson started to look confident at the crease as time passed by and runs too started to come easily for the duo.Root completed his hundred from 186 balls as he continued his march and was taking England from position of safety to a position of strength.Soon Anderson and Root completed their century partnership as England went past 400.Anderson too got to his well deserved half century.In the quest of taking that last wicket,morning session was extended further by 30 minutes but even that was not enough as the duo of Anderson and Root was not separated even at lunch.But before going to lunch,England had scored 485 runs and were leading India by 28 runs.When England's score went past 461,Anderson and Root registered a world record 10th wicket partnership as they broke the previous record of 163 which incidentally came at the same venue as well.In the morning session,Anderson wasn't intimidated by the Indian bowlers as he was unbeaten on 81 going into lunch.

Record 10th wicket partnership 

                                                                               Soon after lunch,Root completed his 150 as a spat between him and Ishant spiced up the contest.Anderson was finally dismissed for 81 as England innings eventually folded at 496.

Head on-Ishant Sharma and J Root

When Indians came out to bat in the second essay,it was important for them to play well and stay focused as they had a deficit of 39 runs and pressure was back on India.First innings centurion M Vijay was looking good and so was Dhawan as pitch offered very little help to English seamers. Just before tea though,Dhawan ran into self destruction as he returned a simple catch off a full toss to M Ali.

                                                                            Pujara and Vijay were at the crease and played well in tandem:one being aggressor and other being cautious.Each of them completed half centuries as they took control of the situation on a docile pitch.But just as we often see,both the Indian Batsmen threw away their wickets immediately after getting fifties and suddenly three wickets were down for India.Double strike brought some respite for Englishmen as they ended the day on better note and Indian scorecard read 167/3 at the close of play on Day 4 with one full day remaining of the Test match.

Score:

India    : 457 & 167/3

England:496

Stumps,Day 4.

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,Eng Vs Ind,1st Test,Trent Bridge,Nottingham,July 9-13 2014

                                                                  Day Five

                                                                         Play started late due to wet ground on Day 5.For India,Kohli and Rahane were at the crease and it was important for the duo to start off well and ensure a steady start in the morning session.Broad,though,had other ideas as he dismissed Kohli LBW just in the 2nd over of the day.Broad got Rahane as well as he celebrated his 2nd wicket in as many overs of his on the day as he managed to produce an edge off Rahane's bat and Prior did the rest.India were in a spot of bother at 173/5 and Broad was in the middle of a superb spell.Broad almost dismissed Dhoni too but for a dropped catch from Dhoni's counterpart,he survived the scare.Cook floored Dhoni's catch at 1st slip which was relatively simple at the highest level of the game.But for Cook,there was no need to regret the dropped catch as Plunkett bowled Dhoni just for 11 to leave India in doldrums at 184 for 6.

Dhoni bowled by Plunkett

England were clearly into the match as they started sensing a victory which looked improbable at one point of time.With India placed at 184/6,Binny,who was on his debut joined Jadeja and both of them had a massive task of saving the match on their shoulders. Jadeja took as many as 38 balls to get off the mark and he finally registered runs against his name when he spanked Anderson straight over his head for a superb boundary.But the important thing was that,both of them were occupying the crease and battling hard to save India from trouble.They survived the tricky period before lunch as they went into lunch unbeaten with India's score being still 6 down for 230,leading England by 191 runs.

                                                   

Binny saved the day for India

                            Binny and Jadeja batted sensibly even after lunch as India's lead crossed 200.Soon,both of them registered 50 run stand and how important that partnership was from India's point of view as it was taking India to a position of safety as the time and overs started to bid by.But,the new ball did the trick for England as their premium bowler Anderson dismissed Jadeja for 31 and India were 7 down with 249 on the board.At this point,England were still in with a slim chance as Cook bowled Anderson and Broad in tandem as a part of last throw of the dice.However English skipper's last throw of the dice didn't work as stubborn partnership between Binny and Kumar meant the match was heading towards a draw.In the meanwhile,Binny completed his maiden half century as his efforts certainly saved the day for India.Finally,Binny was out for 78 as India went into tea at 347/8.

                                                                         

Cook mimicking Bob Willis

With India leading by more than 300 runs and barely a session left,match was done and dusted as boys came out in the evening session just to have some fun.B Kumar recorded 2nd fifty of the match while Cook had some fun with the bowl.Cook even mimicked Bob Willis and he was also able to get a wicket of Ishant Sharma.Finally,with one hour barely left,both the captains decided to shake hands as curtains were drawn on the match which actually turned out to be a pale draw.

Scores:

India      : 457 &391/9d

England :496

Match Drawn.

                                                                                        

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,Eng Vs Ind,2nd Test,Lord's,London July 17-21 2014

                                                                      Day One

Rahul Dravid marks the start of Day 1 at Lord's

                                      With flat and docile pitch playing a spoilsport in Trent Bridge Test,onus was on Lord's wicket to play well and give batters and bowlers an equal and fair advantage.England won the crucial toss and had no hesitation in putting India into bat on a green,grassy wicket.It was clear that England wanted to exploit best of the bowling conditions on a green wicket and they did just that when Anderson dismissed Dhawan cheaply as England drew first blood.Conditions were testing for Indian batsman as they were ready for the grind on a wicket that offered a lot of help to the seamers. Once again Vijay and Pujara got their act together as they survived the crucial first hour of play and showed good technique and temperament with willingness to leave the balls outside their off-stump.But,just as the partnership of Vijay and Pujara was blossoming,Plunkett brought an end to Vijay's stay at the crease as India were reduced to 48/2.Kohli,walked in at No.4 and brought some momentum into the Indian innings with some flurry of runs as India ended the session at 73/2 and clearly session belonged to India as they batted well on a tough pitch.

                                                                  Pujara and Kohli resumed the Indian innings after lunch but Anderson accounted for Kohli's downfall shortly after lunch.Pujara's resolute innings was ended by Stokes delivery that castled his stumps and India were left tottering at 113/4.Dhoni joined Rahane in the middle as they had the responsibility of rebuilding the innings.But,Dhoni edged one to Prior as Broad got rid of Indian skipper just for a single.The next man in,Jadeja too didn't last long as 6th wicket fell at the score of 128.India went into tea at 6 down for 140 with Rahane still at the crease.

                                                                   Binny was the next man to go as Indian team found itself in a horrendous position at 145/7.Though Rahane was playing beautifully at one end,he was running out of partners and needed someone to stick around with him.Finally,he found an able partner in B Kumar as the duo lead the Indian fightback.Soon,Rahane completed his well-crafted half century.Rahane's and Kumar's stay at the crease had a calming influence on the dressing room as their partnership started to flourish.The duo completed their 50 run stand as India went past 200.But,just when their partnership looked threatening,B Kumar's resilience was ended by a Broad delivery that castled his stumps.The 90 run partnership between Rahane and Kumar was of massive importance from India's perspective as that not only saved India from a certain batting collapse but also got some momentum going into the Indian innings.By then,Rahane was playing fluently as he was nearing a Test hundred at Lord's.If he had to grind for his first 50 runs,his next 50 runs were authoritative as he celebrated his hundred at the Mecca of Cricket with a classical punch of the back foot and the whole Indian team rose in jubilation.Rahane's century was a classy knock ,full of determination and solid technique and temperament.He played fabulously well when chips were down and proved his worth,his knock worth weighing in gold.However,Rahane was dismissed by Anderson immediately following his hundred as India ended the day at 290/9.

Ajinkya Rahane celebrates after completing his maiden hundred

at Lord's.

Score:
India 290/9

Stumps,Day 1.

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,England Vs India,2nd Test,Lord's,London,17-21 July 2014

                                                                   Day Two

                                           With last Indian wicket falling quickly in the morning session,England began day 2 on a good note.Cook and Robson walked out to bat as Indian innings folded for 295,clearly 100 runs greater than what Englishmen would have expected,especially at tea time on day one.Well,Cook was under enormous pressure and there was no mercy either from Indian bowlers.He badly needed some runs under his belt but he didn't help himself by nicking a Kumar delivery as wicket-keeper Dhoni completed the catch.Cook took a long walk towards famous Lord's balcony as he was dismissed only for 10,yet another failure!.Runs dried up for England as Robson followed his captain shortly leaving England in a spot of bother at 31/2.Senior pro Bell joined young Ballance at the crease and both of them had to grind for their runs as the duo safely steered England Past 50 at lunch.
                                                                        Post lunch,Kumar got his third scalp when he dismissed Bell as England were reduced to 71/3.Root,joined Ballance at the fall of Bell's wicket and there were high expectations from him,following his hundred in first Test,he being the batsman in form.Root and Ballance stitched together a 42 run partnership before Root succumbed to Jadeja delivery that trapped him in front of his stumps as England found themselves in a critical position at 113/4.Fall of wickets at regular intervals and lack of substantial partnerships were hurting England and they desperately needed one to stabilize their innings.soon,Ballance completed his hard-earned fifty as he and M Ali went into Tea being unbeaten with England's score reading 125/4.

The duo of Ballance and Ali steady the ship for England

                                                                           After Tea,England started to play well and conditions ,being predominantly sunny eased out for batting.The duo of Ballance and Ali made full use of good batting conditions as they completed their 50 run stand-first of the innings for England.Ballance,who was earlier given a life in the slip cordon was making India pay for it and he was nearing his 2nd Test hundred.England went past 200 and young Ballance too got to his hundred as England by then were in a commanding position trailing India by 90 odd runs with 6 wickets still remaining.However,it was India,who finished the day on a better note as they were able to get rid of both the set batsman-Ali and Ballance.Ali was dismissed by part-time off-spinner Vijay while Ballance was caught down the leg-side off B Kumar's bowling for a hard-fought 110. Plunkett and Prior negotiated the last couple of overs of the day as England ended second day's play at 219/6.

Ballance delighted after scoring his hudred

Score:
India       295
England  219/6
Stumps,Day 2.
                                                          

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,England Vs India,2nd Test,Lord's,London,17-21 July 2014

                                                                     Day Three

                                                  With match evenly poised on Day 2,a fascinating day was on the cards on Saturday,Day 3 of the Test match and the home team didn't disappoint it's supporters as Plunkett and Prior moved on nicely to take England past 250 in no time in the morning session.The duo completed their 50 run stand as by then England trailed India by merely 30 odd runs.But just when their partnership looked threatening,Prior was sent back to the pavilion for 23 by M Shami.Next man to go was England's bowling all-rounder B Stokes and he didn't trouble the scorers as he recorded second successive duck and England were reduced to 276/8.Stokes was B Kumar's fifth scalp and boy,how delighted he was! Broad,who came in at No.10 to join Plunkett,failed to contribute substantially as he made his way back only for a score of 4.Broad's dismissal left England at 280/9,still in deficit by 15 runs.Though wickets were falling at one end,Plunkett wasn't willing to give up as he in company of Anderson stretched England's tally past 300.England's innings finally came to an end at 319,leading India by 24 runs with Plunkett remaining unbeaten on 55.When India came out to bat in their 2nd innings before lunch,they had to negotiate a tricky passage of 4 overs,which they did successfully as they ended the session at 11 for no loss.
                                                                    After lunch,Dhawan tried to play aggressively and scored the runs briskly before getting out for 31,thanks to a spectacular catch from Root at point off Stokes's bowling.Dhawan was out yet again after getting a start and his dismissal brought Pujara at the crease.Vijay,who was at the other end was crawling and working hard for his runs as he was effectively setting himself up for a long innings.The duo of Vijay and Pujara completed their 50 run-stand as they remained unbeaten going into Tea with India's score being 84/1.
                                                                        In the evening session,India were coasting at 118/1 with Vijay-Pujara partnership going strong and just then came the double strike from Plunkett as he removed Pujara and Kohli off successive deliveries to reduce India to 118/3.Pujara was out caught behind by Prior and Kohli erred in judging the line of the delivery as the ball he chose to leave thrashed his stumps.First innings centurion Rahane was out for 5,thanks to an umpiring error as Indians found themselves in a dismal position at 123/4.Indian skipper joined Vijay as both of them had a massive responsibility of resurrecting the Indian innings. Dhoni and Vijay played well,respecting the match situation and in the meanwhile,Vijay got to his fifty;fifty off 162 balls,continuing his good form as India ended Day 3 with M Vijay and M S Dhoni still at the crease.

M Vijay held the Indian Innings together with a gritty knock

Scores:
India             295 &169/4
England        319
Stumps,Day 3.

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,England Vs India,2nd Test,Lord's,London,17-21 July 2014

Day Four

                                                                With India effectively on 145/4 and two full days to go,match was evenly poised at the end of Day 3.It was vital for either side to take control of Day 4 and thereby take control of the match. Vijay and Dhoni continued their good work on Day 4 as well as they ground all their way to take India past 200.But Dhoni's resolute knock was ended by Plunkett as he departed for 19.Stuart Binny,India's No.7 made no contribution and India were suddenly tottering at 203/6.Though wickets were falling at one end,Vijay was as solid as a rock at the other and certainly needed someone to stay along with him to stretch the lead into a substantial number. Jadeja,who came in at the fall of Binny's wicket was not only ready to give Vijay company but also ready to score runs at will and take the English attack to the cleaners. Jadeja was aggressive from the word Go and brought some much needed momentum into the Indian innings.In the meanwhile,Vijay who looked well set for a fabulous hundred was agonizingly dismissed for 95 as it turned out to be a case of so near yet so far.Even though he didn't get his hundred,his knock was worth it's weight in gold and he surely held Indian innings together when it mattered the most. Vijay's wicket didn't trouble Jadeja as he continued his onslaught and along with B kumar carried India's tally to 267 at lunch.

                                                                 Following lunch interval,the duo of Jadeja and B Kumar was in full flow. Jadeja,soon reached his half-century in a typical swashbuckling style and his knock surely was taking India to a position of strength.In the course of time,India's total went past 300 and Jadeja-Kumar partnership was taking the game away from England. Jadeja's entertaining innings was finally brought to an end by Stokes for 68 and that also ended a glorious 99-run stand between him and B Kumar.B kumar too completed his fifty,3rd of the series for him.His wicket brought curtains on Indian innings as India folded out for 342,leading England by a handsome margin of 318 runs.With 319 runs to win,pressure was back on the home team as Cook & co. had to play really well to get over the line.England got off to a shaky start though as opener Robson was trapped LBW off Jadeja's first delivery just at the stroke of Tea.

Jadeja exults after reaching halt-century

                                                                      Post Tea,England and Cook in particular had torrid time as runs were hard to come by.Cook in company of Ballance stitched a hard-earned fifty run partnership as both of them were trying to calm down the nerves within the England dressing room.But soon after that,Ballance was dismissed off Shami's bowling,caught behind by Dhoni.Bell,who came in at No.4 was next man to go as he was castled by a beauty of a delivery from Ishant Sharma.Bell's wicket certainly lead to ringing of alarm bells within the English camp as England were suddenly three down.Ishant was all pumped up as he got rid of England captain just in his next over to leave England shattered at 72/4.Indians were at the top of their game as three quick wickets tightened their grip on the match.J Root and M Ali just about survived the remainder of the day as England ended the day that clearly belonged to Indians at 105/4.

Bell clean bowled by Ishant Sharma

Scores:
India          295 & 342
England     319 & 105/4
Stumps,Day 4.

Pataudi Trophy/Investec Test Series,England Vs India,2nd Test,Lord's,London,17-21 July 2014

Day Five

                                                     By the end of Day 4,England were in a pathetic position and the tension which surrounded their camp was only aggravated by the media following their slump with the bat in the evening session on Day 4.If English think-tank was facing the heat,there was lot of excitement and buzz around the Indian camp as the prospect of Test match victory at Lord's had not only rejuvenated the Indian dressing room but also millions of cricket crazy fans back home.However,this was not the time for Indians to get carried away as the game was not won yet and it was extremely critical for them to get back to their basics and execute the plans to conquer the remaining six English wickets.English,too were not going to throw it away easily and bearded Ali and Root were ready for the hard grind.Root and Ali stretched their partnership beyond 50 on fifth morning as both of them survived the crucial first hour without any damage being done.England registered 150 runs on the board and slowly but surely Root-Ali partnership was settling down,giving relief to their dressing room.Root too completed his hard-fought half century as he continued his good run with the bat.Root was going strong,England had already crossed 150 run-mark and now the desperation was steadily but surely creeping within the Indian camp as inability to take even a single wicket in the session was hurting them big time.It was probably the last over before lunch interval and Ishant was the man bowling it.For the last ball of the last over before lunch,M Ali was on strike and Ishant ,though reluctant bowled a bouncer-a well directed one just on his captain's advice and to his surprise and team's delight,it fetched a wicket,a much needed one as far as India was concerned.Ali took his eyes off the ball and played a nothing shot to get caught at short leg.
         

Ishant Sharma delighted after dismissing Moeen Ali just at the stroke of Lunch

                                                                              Short ball theory worked well to get rid of M Ali and Indians were ready to unleash some more short ball stuff in the post-lunch session.Wicket-keeper Batsman Prior joined Root. Prior was under enormous pressure to keep his place in the side,but that did not stop him from counter-attacking as he and Root brought up some quick runs with their onslaught against the short ball stuff.Though runs were flowing thick and fast,Dhoni persisted with his short-ball tactic and just when one thought that this move was going nowhere,it brought rich dividends as Prior,Stokes and Root-all fell to short ball stuff off Ishant's bowling and England collapsed to 201/8.Ishant Sharma was the man of the moment as he was the chief architect of England's downfall.Prior and Root were caught straight down the throat of deep square leg while Stokes was caught at mid-wicket to register his third consecutive duck. Ishant Sharma came back to claim his 7th wicket of the innings and Broad-yet another English Batsman had fallen to short ball stuff.Anderson,England No.11 was ran out by Jadeja to give India a Test match victory ,their second at the home of Cricket.India won the Test match at Lord's after 28 long years and this was India's first win after three and half years outside the Indian Sub-continent.

Winning Moment-Jadeja runs out Andrson

Scores:
India           295 & 342
England      319 & 223
India won by 95 runs.