Key events
108th over: India 387-8 (Yadav 4, Bumrah 1) Bashir continues from the other end and England are on the prowl, men around the bat and plenty of chatter. They would dearly love to knock India over for less than 400, that would be nothing more than an unmitigated success after losing the toss and being asked to field. Like a sniper over a speed dating event -Kuldeep and Bumrah pick off the singles.
107th over: India 383-8 (Yadav 1, Bumrah 0) Jasprit Bumrah is the new batter. He and Anderson also have a bit of niggle in their recent history – remember the short ball barrage at Lord’s a couple of years back? A solid block from Bumrah sees out the end of the over. A wicket maiden from the indomitable Jimmy.
WICKET! Jaiswal c Bairstow b Anderson 209 (India 383-8)
The big one! What a morning James Anderson is having – he picks up his second wicket of the session in his seventh over on the spin. Jaiswal gets frustrated and plays a wild hack off a length ball outside off stump with the field set back, Jonny Bairstow taking a fine tumbling catch in the deep. A great innings comes to an end, Jaiswal trudges off to a huge ovation. However, England are right in this Test match.
106th over: India 383-7 (Jaiswal 209, Yadav 1) Bashir is into his groove and is tossing the ball up nicely on and around off stump. Jaiswal pokes a single off the first ball of the over and Kuldeep sees out five dots. The final ball skidded on and hit the knee roll, England go up but choose against a review, it was close though! Umpires call on height – the ball was clipping the bails. Teensy tiny margins.
105th over: India 382-7 (Jaiswal 208, Yadav 1) Anderson reels off his sixth over of the morning. Jaiswal is happy to see him off, nudging the fourth ball of the over down the ground for a single.
104th over: India 381-7 (Jaiswal 207, Yadav 1) Bashir has three slips and a couple of short legs. Stokes is still showing faith in the rookie and attacking. Bashir stitches together a tidy maiden to Kuldeep.
103rd over: India 381-7 (Jaiswal 202, Yadav 0) Anderson scuds one into Kuldeep’s pads but Umpire Gaffaney shakes his head in response to the vociferous appeal. Top work again from the official, it pitched outside leg stump. Stokes wisely opts against the review at the last second. Close! Anderson takes the shoulder of Jaiswal’s bat but the edge flies wide of the cordon and away for four. This has been a masterclass of sub-continental seam bowling by the – checks notes – 41 year old.
Yashasvi Jaiswal goes to a majestic double century by smearing Bashir over square leg for SIX and following up with another sweep off a full toss for four more. What a moment for the young man, he drops his bat and removes his helmet to blow a few kisses into the crowd. And why not eh. His batting has mixed eye catching aggression with solid defence, the 22 year old has held this innings together and then some.
102nd over: India 375-7 (Jaiswal 202, Yadav 0)
101st over: India 364-7 (Jaiswal 191, Yadav 0) Kuldeep Yadav is the new batter and he is beaten all ends up by Anderson, who is visibly pumped. As well he might be, he has this new ball on a string.
WICKET! Ashwin c Foakes b Anderson 20 (India 364-7)
A beauty! Ashwin does well to nick a lovely late swinging delivery on off stump and Ben Foakes takes a sharp low catch behind the stumps. Anderson wins this particular battle.
1ooth over: India 360-6 (Jaiswal 183, Ashwin 15) Bashir sends down three dots to Jaiswal. SIX! Jaiswal decides enough is enough and springs out of his crease to loft a decent length ball over mid-on for a biggun. He moves into the 190s with that lusty blow.
“Morning Jim”
It very much is, Martin Wright.
“Don’t Anderson and Ashwin have form? Could be quite spicy of if the latter stays around. I predict a send-off… Keep that coffee flowing!”
I think they have had a ding dong or two over the years, I remember Virat Kohli paying peacemaker during one heated exchange a few years ago.
99th over: India 352-6 (Jaiswal 183, Ashwin 15) The Talented Mr Anderson has got the ball wobbling both ways off the wicket. He brings one back into Jaiswal and England go up for the lbw. It looked like it may have pitched outside leg? I know nuthin’. It is NOT OUT as the ball was just going over the top of the bails but it did pitch in line. Nevertheless, England lose a review. Just a solitary leg bye off the over.
98th over: India 351-6 (Jaiswal 183, Ashwin 15) Shot. Ashwin leans on a full ball from Bashir and plays it in-to-out, threading through the covers for four. He’s a dangerous batter and England will want to see the back of him before he gets properly settled at the crease.
This was summat and nothing by the way.
97th over: India 346-6 (Jaiswal 182, Ashwin 12) Anderson nearly cleans up Jaiswal with a delicious wobble seam ball that beats both the stumps and the outside edge by a whisker. The splosh of blond in his hair gives him a raffish quality, it’s a bit Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf in The Talented Mr Ripley. Just a couple of singles to keep India ticking over.
96th over: India 344-6 (Jaiswal 181, Ashwin 11) Bashir continues with the new ball and there’s just a single to Ashwin off it. Anderson is ticking (even more than usual) as the tv replays show him getting riled up by Ashwin standing so close to the umpire at the non-striker’s end. One to keep an eye on.
95th over: India 343-6 (Jaiswal 181, Ashwin 10) England have taken the new ball and the blonde streaked James Anderson has it in his mitts. Now then. There is movement straight away off the seam, Anderson does his thing and nips the ball past Jaiswal’s outside edge with his very first delivery. There are two slips in place and two men out on the fence for the hook/pull. Close! Anderson takes the edge but it doesn’t carry to the cordon. Promising signs for England.
94th over: India 341-6 (Jaiswal 180, Ashwin 9) Bashir will begin proceedings on day two. The crowd looks plentiful and is particularly loud, lots of schoolchildren are in as it is a Saturday. They emit a huge cheers as Jaiswal rocks back and collects a single off the first ball of the day and then go absolutely bananas as Aswhin gets on the front foot and drives handsomely for four through the covers.
We’ve got a about five minutes until the start of the action. The players are beginning to emerge. So is my headache.
Mood.
Elsewhere…
An early email from Michael Meagher:
“Mood music from England is good but… WinViz has India at 90%”
With that, he’s gone. Like a Keyser Söze of the OBO mailbag.
I’m cranking into action too, slowly. I knew I shouldn’t have stayed for that final pint… eeejit. A vat of the inevitable bean based liquid is brewing and should sort me out. Do get in touch on the emails or social meedja’s and we can take this first session down together. Please?
The TV coverage cranks into action. SirAlastair Cook and Steve Finn both reckon it was England’s day yesterday and that is a crucial day coming up in the context of the series.
“They’ll be thrilled with that” 👏
Michael Atherton says it was a good day for England, despite Yashasvi Jaiswal’s century for India 🏏 pic.twitter.com/TAGCNAOy8D
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) February 2, 2024
Here’s the magnificent Tanya Aldred on Woking’s finest and the Rohit snaring Shoaib Bashir:
Shoaib Bashir, was making his Test debut. Bashir is just 20, with only six first-class games and 10 first-class wickets under his belt. As tall as the office blocks sprouting all over his home town of Woking, he has fingers that curve over and around a cricket ball, shrinking it to dried cranberry proportions. Shirt loose in the Bazball way, he reacted to Stokes throwing him the ball in the 12th over with astonishing calm, after England lost the toss on a flat wicket.
All easy action, he rattled through a first accurate over, conceding only a single, and 2.3 overs later had his first Test wicket, when Rohit Sharma angled his bat and the ball plopped into Ollie Pope’s hands at leg slip, with Bashir watching its arc the whole way. Bashir pumped his long arms in glee before being smothered by his loving new teammates.
Preamble
James Wallace
Hello and welcome to the day two OBO of India v England in Visakhapatnam. It is very early here in a treacle skied south London. Let’s catch up on the state of the game after day one and go gently into what promises to be another good/crucial/intriguing/ night.
In short – India won the toss and chose to bat first on a featherbed. They finished the day on 336-6 with 22 year old opener Yashasvi Jaiswal carrying his bat for 179*. And yet – England would have probably been the happier side after picking up six wickets and giving themselves the chance of bowling India out for a first innings score of around 400 or so. Did I mention it is flat?