The Report by Varun Shetty10-Aug-2018Stumps In a match that had already lost a day to rain, at a ground where a middle-aged man attempted belly flops on the covers, on a day the media-box’s kitchen was reportedly flooded, India’s batting line-up found ways to be the clumsiest, most broken part of the game. Sent in to bat on a day punctuated by three rain breaks, India offered little resistance against a four-pronged pace attack that made optimum use of the conditions to flatten them for 107.The first sign of why both captains were looking to bowl came pretty early – no, we’re not saying India might have bowled first just to avoid facing James Anderson. Such was the majesty of his outswinger from middle stump that M Vijay would have been caught square and lost his off stump even in the heat of his hometown Chennai, let alone the damp, dank and dark batting minefield that Lord’s had turned into in the first session.KL Rahul looked in control when he hit his two boundaries, but found no respite from England’s new-ball pair otherwise. Having got an unplayable ball in the channel in the second innings at Edgbaston, Rahul looked to be trying to get on the front foot as much as possible. However, his discipline was of little use against Anderson, whose entire bowling plan revolved around pushing his awayswingers wide outside off to feed the batsman’s leave, before getting him to jab instinctively at one that appeared playable but jagged away at the last moment.In his last spell of the day, Anderson dismissed Ajinkya Rahane with the same tactics, after India’s No. 5 had quietly begun to settle against a predominantly short-of-a-length strategy. With Rahane’s wicket, Anderson separated India’s most comfortable-looking pair – Ashwin being the other half of it – and from there it didn’t take long. Kuldeep and Ishant were bagged and Anderson’s 26th five-wicket haul took him to 99 wickets at Lord’s. Only Muttiah Muralitharan (SSC, Galle, Kandy) has taken 100-plus wickets at a Test venue.Ashwin was by far the most settled batsman for India, and loosened up after Rahane fell. Having earlier shown some solidity, getting behind the line of the ball constantly, Ashwin swished boundaries off the back foot, in front of square, on either side of the wicket. Nifty hands-only nudges past the bowler helped pick up his other runs. Until he was trapped in front by Stuart Broad, a leading edge that Rashid lost in the sky was the only blemish in his innings.Getty Images
The biggest talking point of the match came before the final rain break, when India, having lost their openers early, were looking to see out the new ball and overcast conditions. Brought in for Shikhar Dhawan to do just that, Cheteshwar Pujara had jabbed his way to 1 off 24 balls when a mix-up with Virat Kohli brought an ugly end to his innings.Pujara had responded to Kohli’s call after dropping the ball into the off side and, having seen his captain sprint the first few steps, put his head down to commit for the run. As Ollie Pope came swooping down at it from fourth slip, Kohli’s decision to stop and turn back was received late by Pujara, whose clunky strides were hard to stop even as Kohli made for the non-striker’s crease. Pope had the simplest task as he walked to the stumps to complete the run-out. Seconds later, the biggest thunderstorm of the day descended on Lord’s and, cruelly, Pujara was forced to run back into the pavilion.Upon returning, India were met with gleaming sunshine, and Kohli put up the biggest partnership of the innings with Rahane for the fourth wicket. But their 34-run stand was not a comfortable time for Kohli, whose penchant for stabbing in front of the body was on show again. Kohli survived many times during his century at Edgbaston, either through dropped catches or through soft hands; that seemed the pattern again, as edges fell short, and Jos Buttler dropped him at second slip. However, there wasn’t any follow-up fortune.The very next ball, Kohli’s IPL team-mate Chris Woakes swung one away from middle, got Kohli reaching well in front, and had him taken at second slip. Again, it was Jos Buttler.A repeat performance from Woakes and Buttler – a drop followed by a catch – accounted for Hardik Pandya, who was sent in at No. 6, and Sam Curran bent a massive inswinger past Dinesh Karthik’s flappy drive away from the body to take his off stump.India were the last team from the subcontinent to lose at Lord’s, five Tests and seven years ago. Should there be uninterrupted play on the third day, India are in danger of growing their list of losses at the venue.
