Akash Deep’s outstanding performance led India to a series-tying victory at Edgbaston, Birmingham. The fast bowler concluded with figures of 6 for 99 in the second innings – marking his best innings performance – and achieved his best match figures of 10 for 187, playing a crucial role in India’s impressive 336-run triumph in the second Test (the largest margin of victory in terms of runs for them in an away Test). Despite a rain interruption at the beginning of Day 5 and a determined 88 from Jamie Smith, England could only provide limited resistance as Akash dismantled the England batting order to record the best match figures for an Indian bowler in England. With this victory, their first in nine attempts at this ground, India also became the inaugural Asian team to secure a Test win at Edgbaston.
India plan out their way to an all out
Following a rain delay that postponed the commencement of play by 100 minutes, Prasidh Krishna and Akash initiated the bowling, with Akash operating from the end where he had previously taken two wickets on Day 4. Akash quickly achieved success from this end as well, enticing a tentative Ollie Pope to push forward and inadvertently play the ball onto the stumps. Prasidh maintained a tight line from the opposite end, contrasting with his performance in the first innings, while Akash consistently challenged the off-stump and the area outside it. However, he then delivered a delivery that sharply angled in towards Harry Brook, resulting in an LBW decision. Akash and Prasidh continued their spell until the drinks break, but Ben Stokes and Smith managed to keep the pacers at bay while also finding the boundary on several occasions.
Mohammed Siraj was the first to be substituted into the bowling attack, while Ravindra Jadeja took over from the other end, causing Stokes some trouble by targeting the rough patches outside off-stump. The England captain nearly edged one to leg-slip but still managed to score off Siraj as the sixth wicket partnership reached fifty runs. With approximately five minutes remaining before the break, Washington was introduced and bowled in conjunction with Jadeja. The offspinner believed he had Stokes caught down the leg-side, but Shubman Gill opted against a review. Nevertheless, Washington soon made an impact, dismissing Stokes LBW just before Lunch, with a review proving ineffective for the left-handed batsman.
At the beginning of the second session, Washington found the outside edge of Chris Woakes’s bat, but the ball fell short of KL Rahul, who was positioned a bit deep at slip. Jadeja continued from the other end, quickly completing his overs and increasing the pressure on the batsmen. Smith, who was reaching for deliveries pitched outside leg from Jadeja, brought up his fifty. However, India maintained the pressure and reintroduced Akash into the attack, with the pacer generating several opportunities that ultimately went begging. Prasidh then entered from the opposite end and concluded the seventh wicket partnership with a short ball that was top-edged by Woakes. In the same over, Smith utilized the DRS to overturn an on-field lbw decision.
Akash Deep gets a 10 wicket haul
Smith subsequently faced short deliveries from Akash, managing to hit a couple of sixes; however, the pacer continued with back of length balls, this time pitching it slightly wider, resulting in the wicketkeeper-batter being caught in the deep, thus securing his maiden five-wicket haul before leaving the field shortly thereafter. Brydon Carse attempted to resist, but England lost their ninth wicket as Josh Tongue was dismissed by Jadeja, courtesy of an excellent catch by Siraj at short midwicket. Akash returned and nearly claimed his sixth wicket, but Siraj misjudged a high catch offered by Carse. Shoaib Bashir hit a six in the same over and subsequently utilized the DRS to overturn a caught-behind decision when he attempted to paddle Jadeja. Ultimately, Akash achieved his 10th wicket of the match, with Gill holding onto a mis-timed shot from Carse.
Earlier in the Test, India’s batting performance centered around their captain Gill, who scored 269 – the highest score by an Indian captain, and was part of a 203-run partnership with Jadeja, followed by a 144-run partnership with Washington for the sixth and seventh wickets, propelling India to a first innings total of 587 after being asked to bat. England had fallen to 84 for 5 before Smith and Brook formed a 303-run partnership that lifted England to 407, with Siraj achieving figures of 6-70 while Akash took 4 for 88.
With a lead of 180, India had another fruitful innings with the bat, again led by their captain who scored 161, marking the second-best aggregate by a player in a Test. India concluded at 427 for 6 declared, setting England a target of 608. There were some concerns regarding the timing of the declaration, which occurred just an hour into the final session on Day 4. Nevertheless, India struck back early against England, taking three wickets towards the end of Day 4, and despite the rain on Day 5, they managed to overcome it to secure a remarkable victory.
SCORECARD: India 587 (Shubman Gill 269, Ravindra Jadeja 89, Yashasvi Jaiswal 87; Shoaib Bashir 3-167) & 427/6 decl. (Shubman Gill 161, Ravindra Jadeja 69*, Rishabh Pant 65; Josh Tongue 2-93) beat England 407 (Jamie Smith 184*, Harry Brook 158; Mohammed Siraj 6-70, Akash Deep 4-88) & 271 (Jamie Smith 88, Brydon Carse 38; Akash Deep 6-99) by 336 runs.