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England had a remarkable start to the second day of the opening Test against India on Friday, securing the crucial wicket of the dangerous Yashasvi Jaiswal. The Indian opener had taken an inherently aggressive approach in his innings against England, amassing an impressive 76 runs off just 70 balls by the end of day 1. Jaiswal’s gameplay drew comparisons to England’s renowned ‘bazball,’ a term referring to the attacking style of play adopted by captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum since taking over the reins in Tests in 2022.
During his unbeaten 76 on Day 1, Jaiswal unleashed an onslaught, smashing nine fours and three sixes against the England bowlers. Despite his aggressive performance, England captain Ben Stokes might have missed an opportunity by not introducing right-arm offspinner Joe Root into the attack. Stokes opted for his three frontline spinners in debutant Tom Hartley, Rehan Ahmed, and Jack Leach on Day 1; however, out of these, Leach and Hartley were left-armers, while Rehan is a leg-spinner. Jaiswal found little difficulty in playing through these spinners.
Although Hartley struggled to generate a significant turn off the surface, a favourable turn against Rehan and Leach made Jaiswal’s strokeplay appear facile. Hartley watched helplessly as Jaiswal sent his first ball in international cricket soaring over the long-on ropes for a six. The opener repeated the treatment four balls later to make it a highly forgettable first over in Test cricket for Hartley.
The hard-hitting Jaiswal appeared to take a liking to Hartley’s bowling, thanks to the latter’s nerves on a debut. While commentators debated the logic behind continuing with Hartley, he looked clearly under pressure bowling half-volleys, long-hops and even a couple of no-balls. It was evident that Jaiswal wanted to play him more than any other bowler, and Stokes, despite the free flow of runs, persisted with the spinner.
On the first over of Day 2, Stokes finally introduced Joe Root into the attack. While Yashasvi Jaiswal did step out against the England part-timer, smashing him for a four over mid-on, he succumbed off the very next delivery. Stepping out again, Jaiswal fell victim to Root’s delivery turning away, failing to shuffle in time and providing an easy catch back to Root. This breakthrough was crucial for England as it halted Jaiswal’s impressive innings, denying him a century as he was dismissed for 0.
Interestingly, former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar had pointed out the absence of Root right after the end of the first day. “Ben Stokes missed a trick by not bowling Joe Root to him immediately when he came to bat, or when the spin was introduced. It was like a dream for him to bowl two left-arm spinners bowling together, and a leg-spinner later,” Manjrekar had said on ESPNCricinfo.
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