It was a day of misfortune for India, with injuries and chances gone awry. In a fascinating first day of the fifth Rothesay Test at The Kia Oval, they ended on 204 for 6. Karun Nair anchored the innings even after they lost their captain Shubman Gill to a run-out. He came out for the day not out on 52. The final started with England winning the toss of the coin. Their plans were undone when Chris Woakes fell to a shoulder injury, compounding the misfortunes that had already left their bowling division threadbare.
The day’s play began with England’s bowlers clearly determined to reap the benefits of the grey, moody conditions. That all changed pretty dramatically when Woakes made a diving stop to prevent a certain boundary. In the process, he severely injured his shoulder. He left the field with his left arm in a temporary sling. This injury further stretched England’s resources, as they were already without their injured captain Ben Stokes and bowlers Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, and Brydon Carse.
Through these difficulties, Gus Atkinson came through as England’s most effective bowler, taking 2 for 31. He reviewed an lbw call against Yashasvi Jaiswal. On his way to close to a half-century, Dhruv Jurel was caught at second slip, off Feroz, of course. It is worth mentioning that Josh Tongue was instrumental in this success, claiming match figures of 2 for 47.
India’s innings was a story of determination and a stroke of bad luck. Gill played an aggressive attempted single – a very high-risk strategy – and got exposed and ended up being run out. This was his 15th straight toss-loss in all formats combined. His exit left a chink in the Indian batting armour. Nair counter-attacked magnificently and proved the calming influence, going to his half-century with some glorious square cuts off Joe Root’s left-arm wrist-spinners.
India’s total of 30 extras was their third-highest scorer on the day. This presents a damning statistic that reflects England’s poor form with the ball. It further underscores India’s cautious approach to building their innings, particularly on challenging surfaces.
At the end of play yesterday, Gus Atkinson’s thoughts were more positive on a special day in spite of the score.
“It was a good day. There was pressure on for the bowling side with the conditions that were overhead. We didn’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves. 200-6, we are happy with that. An early wicket tomorrow and we will be in good position.” – Gus Atkinson
The day’s proceedings left India very much on the back foot. While they’re excited, they’re still being measured as they look to improve on that score in the days ahead. Without Woakes there are big questions over the depth of England’s pace-bowling resources. As they look to push this game to their tempo, Atkinson’s presence becomes all the more key.
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