Rahul Dravid identifies the turning point of the first Test
India suffered an eye-opening defeat against England in the first Test in what was only their fourth defeat at home in this format since 2012. After the proceedings in the first two days, India were in the driver’s seat, looking set for another comprehensive victory. Despite losing the toss, India did well in the first half of the game.
While bowling first, India bundled England on a mere 246 on a pleasant batting track. Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin took two wickets each, while Jasprit Bumrah and Axar Patel dismissed two batters each. After a terrific bowling performance, Indian batters provided an ideal platform for their bowlers in the second innings.
They registered a mammoth 436, batting 121 overs in their first dig. Yashasvi Jaiswal (80), KL Rahul (86), and Ravindra Jadeja (87) notched up terrific fifties, while Srikar Bharat (41) and Axar Patel (44) also batted well. A collective effort provided India with a big 190-run first innings lead.
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While they started well in the second innings as a bowler, England’s Ollie Pope played a marvellous knock, backed by the lower-order batters and tailenders, to help the team post a tricky 231-run target. While chasing, India were all-out on 202, as Tom Hartley picked seven wickets to script a memorable victory for England.
Rahul Dravid identifies the turning point of the first Test
Rahul Dravid attended the post-match press conference after India’s shocking defeat in Hyderabad. He talked about various things and felt that India should have bundled England earlier in the third innings. The Indian coach felt Ollie Pope’s innings made the difference in the game.
“To be honest, 230 was a pretty challenging score on this wicket in the fourth innings, and it is always going to be challenging in India. 230 runs on a fourth-day wicket, which was turning. We shouldn’t have been chasing 230, but Ollie Pope came out and played a fantastic innings. He played a lot of high-risk shots and executed them superbly. 196 on that wicket where nobody else got a 50 in their side made the difference in the game,” stated Dravid.
A key feature of Pope’s knock was his precise use of different sweeps consistently. Dravid praised Ollie Pope for using reverse sweeps so well throughout the innings.
“I certainly didn’t see someone do it that consistently and successfully. Especially the reverse sweep; to play it for that long and successfully, hats off to him.”
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