Root’s men were deep-rooted to  the cause at MAC, Chennai

By V.N. Prasad

Congratulations to Joe Root and Co., on commencing the tour on a high note; 1-0 victory.  Also, personal congratulations to Captain Root on that magnificent ‘Double Hundred’ on his 100th outing; the first in the history of Test cricket. Confidence was supreme. Quality was outstanding. I was reminded of Geoff Boycott’s frequent mention “See Early. Play Late”. Root was a perfect epitome of this art. Only humidity of Chennai must have hindered him going well past the scintillating double hundred.

While pondering over the 5 days, a few intriguing questions pass through our minds.

1. The ‘Track’ did not appear a professionally prepared one. Reddish and rough surface that damaged the ‘Seam’ significantly too early. Imagine seam wearing off by the 40th over.

2. A flat Track that neither helped the seamers  nor the spinners on days 1 and 2; on which the English batsmen made merry. Were we witnessing a Tennis Ball match?

3. The ‘Huffing and Puffing’ from the 3rd day with uneven bounce.

Absolutely poor show by the curator and his team; not worthy of any excuse. In fact, the poor pitch diminished the value of watching a Test Tie. Further, a few about our team.

4. Was Nadeem’s inclusion justified at the cost of Kuldeep —certainly not.

5. Was Ishant Sharma under-bowled in the 1st inning. 27 overs in two days — and the guy who bowled well in tandem with Bumrah. Where were you Captain?

Poor judgment by Shastry and Kohli.

Carrying the supreme confidence gained at the Gabba, Washy Sundar scripted another superb knock. The way he gets behind the ball and drives off the front foot were all pleasing to the eyes. God willing, he should go a long way. If only he can develop into a ‘Thinking Off Spinner’ — I mean usage of the width of the crease and ability to drag the batsman out of the crease — he is poised to be a great asset. 

Rishab Pant added gloss with his fearless and fierce knock. Poor Pujara should not have got out the way he did — the ‘Ill Luck’ that neither he deserved nor the team India. Well, that’s cricket. Ashwin rose tall with his match haul of 9 wickets. 

High time Rohit was told that Test Matches is not his cup of tea. Gill is settling down well and is sure to gain confidence in times to come. I am sure Dravid would have advised him to develop ‘Big Match Temperament’ — that is to carry on much beyond the 50s.

Before concluding, I should admire the guile of Jimmy Anderson. At 38, and under unfriendly conditions, he bowled superbly; particularly in the 2nd inning. Gill’s off stump cartwheeling  was a beauty. Rahane was lucky to survive the LBW — but the next one from Jimmy was yet another beauty. He was ably supported by the spinners Bess and Leach. While Bess was at his best in the 1st inning,  Leach leached onto our batsmen in the second inning with the cherry dancing up and down — thanks to the curators.