The Indian cricket team pulled off a stunning comeback in an away Test series against England six years back on this day. The Virat Kohli-led side endured much disappointment in the first two Tests of the five-match series. England notched a 31-run victory in the opening game in Birmingham before winning the second Test by an innings and 159 runs at Lord’s. India had to win the third match to remain alive in the series.
The-then England captain Joe Root won the toss and asked the visitors to bat first at Nottingham. India failed to make a desired start as they went three-wicket down at just 82 runs.
Player of the Match goes to #TeamIndia Skipper @imVkohli.#ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/4MTJj87MmY— BCCI (@BCCI) August 22, 2018
That is when Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane took over the charge. The duo stitched a 159-run partnership, saving the team from a potential collapse. Rahane scored a gritty 81 off 131 balls while Kohli missed out on his century by just three runs.
Fabulous spell of fast bowling by @jaspritbumrah93. A good fightback by #TeamIndia with every player contributing. #ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/BLv1khrq3y— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 22, 2018
After they returned to the dressing room, Hardik Pandya and Ravichandran Ashwin made some valuable contributions as India posted 329 on the board. The English pacers stole the show with the new ball, with James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes bagging three wickets each.
Congratulations to #TeamIndia on a memorable victory, coming on the back of a tough loss at Lord’s makes it more special. Collective effort by the team and support staff to get back in the series. @BCCI pic.twitter.com/jwJitVeput— MANOJ TIWARY (@tiwarymanoj) August 22, 2018
The batting unit of the hosts side looked quite pale in their first innings. Except for Jos Buttler, no other batter could breach the 30-run mark. Hardik Pandya was the top-performing bowler for India. The all-rounder fetched a five-wicket haul while conceding only 28 runs in six overs.
Among others, Jasprit Bumrah and Ishant Sharma each picked two wickets. Thanks to their exceptional bowling, England were bundled out for 161 runs.
The opening pair of Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul gave India a positive start in the second innings, scoring 44 and 36 runs respectively. Cheteshwar Pujara survived 208 deliveries and added 72 runs to the scoresheet.
Virat Kohli once again appeared in sublime form and played a 103-run knock facing 197 deliveries. Hardik Pandya was equally impressive with the bat and notched a quickfire half-century, featuring seven boundaries and one six. India decided to declare their innings at 352 runs.
The English top order collapsed during the second innings. This time, Jasprit Bumrah spearheaded the Indian bowling attack with a five-wicket haul. For England, Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes were the only standout batters, scoring 106 and 62 runs respectively.
Their efforts, however, went in vain as England fell 203 runs short of the 521-run target. The hosts won the remaining two Tests and wrapped up the five-match series with a 4-1 victory.
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