After the highs of the Australian tour, India, with key players back from injury, wasn’t expected have too much trouble against the visiting English in the Test series – but stumble a bit they did, before storming back into the contest before finishing things off with the knockout punch.
Rohit Sharma, R Ashwin, Axar Patel and Rishabh Pant all made Test cricket look easier than it is, which left the England team in spot a bit of bother. While captain Virat Kohli did not have the kind of series he would have liked in terms of his individual performances, India saw quite a few special performances.
We look at the top five performers for the hosts from the India-England series.
R Ashwin
Ashwin has been going through a purple patch in recent months and the confidence has been evident in his performances. While the first Test did not go India’s way, Ashwin was one of the key factors in sparking off the comeback, much like he was one the heroes in Sydney.
In Chennai, in his own backyard, Ashwin put on a batting masterclass and scored a century and set up a win which he said would remain special to him. Of course, he also weaved his magic with the ball as well and finished with a match-haul of 8 wickets.
Once the teams moved to Ahmedabad, Ashwin upped the ante yet again and returned with a 15-wicket haul from two Tests. England’s batsmen will not forget their contests with Ashwin in a hurry as he dominated them with his guile right through the final 3 Tests of the series.
Axar Patel
A possibly delayed Test due to injury did no harm to Axar as he looked at home at the highest level. While the playing conditions did make it that tad bit easier for him, there is no denying the immaculate execution of his plans which saw him finish with a bagful of wickets.
Axar’s probing lines and lengths against the England batsmen, who struggled a fair bit, created enormous pressure which helped India pick wickets at regular intervals in the 3 games he played.
Axar, who finished with the best average and strike rate among the bowlers for India, has 4 five-wicket hauls to boast of from his first 3 Tests.
Slotted into the side as a replacement for the very important Ravindra Jadeja, the left-arm spinner, who turns out for the Delhi Capitals in the IPL and for Gujarat in domestic cricket, did no harm to his prospects of a bright Test career.
Rohit Sharma
The Mumbai man is known to do well in home conditions and stamped his authority on the series in the second Test in Chennai. In difficult batting conditions, Rohit, who score 161 in the first innings, put India in a strong position, making batting look like a walk in the park while almost everyone around him, on both teams, struggled.
Against an English pace attack that boasted of names like James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Jofra Archer, the stylish India opener was more than happy to start cautiously before going through the gears.
In the final Test too, Rohit batted time as the likes of Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara all failed to kick on, helping lay the foundation for a huge win to round of the series.
India’s next Test will be in England and if Rohit can provide an encore in the World Test Championship Final and then the England series, India are likely to be in a commanding position.
Rishabh Pant
Like Ashwin, his Delhi Capitals teammate Rishabh Pant has been in the form of his life in Test cricket. Right from Australia up until the final Test against England, Pant has stepped up and delivered whenever needed.
Not just that he gives the commentators a run for their money and keeps his team’s spirits up in difficult situations.
Pant’s abilities with the bat are well documented while his glove-work has been under the scanner for a while now. The Delhi cricketer put in the hard yards and responded with some sharp dismissals behind the stumps – whether it be a diving catch down legside or a quick stumping, Pant was on the money more often than not.
With the bat, he scored two fifties and one century in 6 innings and finished as the second highest run scorer for India.
Pant showed great maturity, showing caution, in the final Test when he scored a match-winning century after the top order collapsed before taking the attack to England in some style – it will be quite a task to forget the reverse sweep to James Anderson, who was steaming in with the second new ball!
Washington Sundar
In his short Test career, Sundar has performed brilliantly with the bat in pressure situations, be it Australia or against England.
An opening batsman in his formative years, Sundar has been rock solid lower down the order allowing the likes of Rishabh Pant to tee off in good time.
While his 85 not out in the first Test could not save India from defeat, Sundar’s unbeaten 96 set up the win in the final Test as he looked assured on his end, allowing Pant to accelerate.
Sundar’s major returns were with the bat, he also picked the wicket of Ben Stokes in the fourth Test just as the southpaw was starting to trouble India in the first innings.
Be that as it may, the first Test century still remains elusive for Washington Sundar.
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