August 10, 2026

Second Test: Good Comeback By India

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2024-02-05 09:11:24

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Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

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After losing the first Test of the 5-match series, India came back strongly to beat England by 106 runs in the second Test at Visakhapatnam. The visitors were given a target of 399 runs to win the match but they folded up for 263 on at the stroke of tea on the fourth day. Although the English batters got starts, the Indian bowlers kept a nagging line and length and were backed by excellent fielding (Shreyas Iyer's direct throw to run out Ben Stokes was superb) and did not allow the visitors to employ their Bazball strategy and run away to victory.

The match was marked by excellent batting by young Yashasvi Jaiswal in the first innings and Shubman Gill in the second. But it was Jasprit Bumrah, who gave a masterclass in the art of reverse swing bowling and took 6 England wickets for 45 runs to restrict the visitors to 253, who took the match away from England. Bumrah also took 3 wickets in the second innings for match figures of 9 for 91. The Indian lead of 143 runs in the first innings made all the difference.

Although India won the match, concerns remain. Apart from Jaiswal and Gill, most other batters got starts but were not able to convert them to good scores. The spinners too, except Ashwin, were not effective. Patidar, drafted in place of K L Rahul, failed in both innings. With Rahul expected to come back for the rest of the matches, one place is settled. But it is still not known whether Virat Kolhi will be available from the third Test and with Shreyas Iyer failing to convert starts, number four is still a concern. Also, Mukesh Kumar did not impress. Since it is a long series, India will have to get its combination right.