Dharamsala Test manages to turn sleepy after India bat on, England can’t bowl them off | Cricket News

India had crossed 400, the lead was close to 200, the Barmy Army trumpeter had started playing Bollywood tunes and England’s hopes were fading. Suddenly on the public address system, the DJ would make Bon Jovi blare: “Take my hand, we’ll make it, I swear … Whoa oh, Livin’ on a prayer.’The American rocker couldn’t inspire the English on the field.
Just then Zak Crawley, the sweeper guarding the cover fence having an ordinary day on the field, let one more sneak through the legs and conceded a boundary. England was living on a prayer for sure, but no one was ready to swear that they would make it.

The Rohit Rumble Show in Dharamshala🏔️🏟️
Another well-deserved Test 💯for #TeamIndia‘s maverick skipper 🙌#IDFCFirstBankTestSeries #BazBowled #INDvENG #JioCinemaSports pic.twitter.com/A686RXXgCm
— JioCinema (@JioCinema) March 8, 2024
On Day 2, India took another step towards turning a good series win to a great one — 3-1 looks a day away from being 4-1. India would finish at 473/8, leading 255 runs.
India’s top 5, between them, scored 2 hundreds and 3 half-centuries. For England, their most successful bowler Shoaib Bashir had figures of 4/170. The team’s spin bowling coach Jeetan Patel would sum the physical trauma of his playing XI with a highly expressive: “Aaargh … it was a hard day.”
As for the fans, this was a day that saw a gradual drop in the excitement and quality of play over the three sessions. The standard set the stroke-filled first session featuring Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill couldn’t be maintained. Between lunch and tea, the two newcomers — Sarfraz Khan and Devdutt Paddikal — did show spark but they were sketchy. The final session was the most uninspiring where India’s charitable low-middle order batsmen gifted wickets to the tired England bowlers. 1st session: 129 runs, 0 wicket; 2nd session: 112 runs, 1 wicket; 3rd session: 97 runs, 5 wickets – these numbers when put on a graph would show a steady decline. That too was true for the mood in the stands.

Apni ballebaazi se jeete har dil, kamaal khele Shubman Gill 💯🫶#IDFCFirstBankTestSeries #BazBowled #INDvENG #JioCinemaSports pic.twitter.com/VBpIakUekG
— JioCinema (@JioCinema) March 8, 2024
England were unrelenting in their planning all day but there was no real headway. Ben Stokes laid traps and set up smokescreens but nothing seemed to be working for them. The pacers would change angles and ends but to no avail. They would try unconventional fields, that too didn’t get them wickets. The leg-trap set Mark Wood got him no rewards. When Shoaib Bashir came over the wicket, Rohit hit him for sixes. Later he would go round, only for Gill to smash him over deep mid-wicket.
Drop in tempo and class
In the second session, there was a visible drop in tempo and class. For the first time in the series, Stokes would bowl. Instantly, he would get Rohit. Gill too followed soon, bringing to the crease Sarfraz (56) and Padikkal (65). They might be edgy and showed chinks in their technique but they didn’t let the runs drop much. Their half-centuries weren’t game-changing but they did give a glimpse of their potential.

Padikkal couldn’t have asked for a better debut. When he walked in as a Test player, the sun was out, there were runs on board and the bowlers had got a hiding from the team’s Top 3. His first few runs were streaky, he did show that he had a backfoot game. His punch through covers being his stand out shot. Sarfraz enhanced his reputation as a busy player not scared to take chances. There was also an important point he made. Before his Test debut, there was talk about his short-ball shortcomings. Today when England’s fastest bowler aimed on his body, he swirled to hit a six.

Devdutt Padikkal shines with a 50 on debut 💪 🔥#IDFCFirstBankTestSeries #BazBowled #INDvENG #JioCinemaSport pic.twitter.com/hjyy6bTukf
— JioCinema (@JioCinema) March 8, 2024
Late in the day, with all the batsmen maintaining a high run-rate, there were speculations around the declaration. Having already scored more than double of England’s total there were those who thought that India would want to take a shot at the tired England batsmen. Demoralised fielders after a largely fruitless day tend to be easy pickings. But captain Rohit and coach Rahul Dravid had other plans. With three more days to go, they were in no hurry.

A classy boundary from Bumrah and the dressing room loved it 😂💙#IDFCFirstBankTestSeries #BazBowled #INDvENG #JioCinemaSports pic.twitter.com/uEPwtr8Kcw
— JioCinema (@JioCinema) March 8, 2024
India’s lower order batsmen — Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Dhruv Jurel — couldn’t add to India’s run pile. So it was left to Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah. There was close to an hour to go and India had lost 8 wickets. Would India’s No.8, 9 and 10 throw their bats, increase their lead and give England a tough half an hour to bat? That was not to be. In the day’s last 20 overs, the leggie and pacer scored 45 runs. That’s when yawns rang around the stadium, fans checked their phones and took their eyes away from the central square.

This wasn’t a day that fitted into this hard-fought series. It wasn’t even about two rivals weighing each other before the strike. This was about a defeated team going through the motions and the winner ensuring the door is sealed and shut. Day 2 of the Test was a non-moving day. In all likelihood, Saturday could be the last day of the series. Celebrations around Rohit Sharma lifting the Cup in the backdrop of the mountains is on the cards. Should it happen, this would be an important series win for the captain, shepherding a young team. There would be fireworks and festivities. But before the big day Saturday, the latter part of Friday was about watching the paint dry.