ENG vs IND: 5 talking points from India’s 5-wicket defeat to England in the Headingley Test

Team India's defeat in the Headingley Test exposed several issues, including fielding lapses, batting collapses, and inconsistent bowling—factors that contributed to a missed opportunity in the series opener against England.

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Highlights of India's defeat in the Headingley Test

Team India did not have an ideal start to the England Test tour as they lost the opening match of the five-match series by five wickets against Ben Stokes's side at Headingley in Leeds on Tuesday, June 24.

After setting a 371-run target, India failed to defend it as England chased it down in 82 overs on Day 5. Ben Duckett was a star performer with the bat as he played a brilliant innings of 149 off 170 balls and formed an 188-run opening stand with Zak Crawley, who contributed 65 off 126 balls. Joe Root (53) and Jamie Smith (44)'s unbeaten 72-run partnership for the sixth wicket helped England to go past the finishing line.

Shardul Thakur led the attack with figures of 2/51 in 10 overs. Prasidh Krishan too picked two wickets but conceded 92 runs in 15 overs. Spin bowling leader Ravindra Jadeja registered figures of 1/104 in 24 overs.

Let’s take a look at five takeaways from India’s defeat in the Headingley Test.

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1. Fielding errors and Jaiswal’s dropped catches

One of the biggest talking points from India’s defeat is none other than misfielding and dropped catches by Yashasvi Jaiswal. The visitors’ loss to England can be significantly attributed to errors on the field. A total of catches were dropped in the match, out of which four were put down by Yashasvi Jaiswal and one each by Ravindra Jadeja and Rishabh Pant. Jaiswal dropped catches of Ben Duckett (twice), Ollie Pope, and Harry Brook.

Apart from dropped catches, there were missed chances by India, including KL Rahul’s failure to attempt a catch of Ben Stokes off Ravindra Jadeja’s bowling and extra runs conceded due to Shardul Thakur’s misfielding in the second innings. Due to six dropped catches, Team India cost 202 runs at the hands of the England batters, a game-changing lapse.

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2. Lower-order collapse

Another big takeaway from India’s defeat is the collapse in their batting line-up, despite a strong foundation laid out by the top-order batters for a solid total. In the first innings, after being put to bat first by the England skipper, India were at 430/4 before the collapse was triggered by the hosts’ bowling attack, resulting in getting bundled out for 471 (losing six in 41 runs).

In the second innings. India were at 333/5 and once again the lower order collapsed as they bundled out for 364, losing the remaining five wickets in just 31 runs. Two batting collapses in quick succession not only halted India’s chances of posting match-winning totals but also exposed their over-dependence on the top order, which came back to haunt them in the final result.

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3. Wayward support bowling

India’s bowling performance was average, as in both innings, the visitors relied heavily on Jasprit Bumrah to deliver a breakthrough. In the first innings, Bumrah led the attack and picked five wickets, while Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj managed to take wickets but conceded over 100 runs in their spells. Krishna and Siraj were often erratic and wayward as they failed to put sustained pressure on England batters.

In the second innings, the opening partnership between Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley was unchallenged for long as the bowlers struggled to maintain consistent line and lengths, allowing the batters to settle in and build a commanding 188–run stand. Interestingly, Jasprit Bumrah had a rare off day as he failed to take a wicket and conceded 57 runs in his spell of 19 overs.

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4. Most individual centuries in a Test defeat

Team India witnessed four batters scoring five centuries in a Test match. This is a rare feat for India in the history of Test cricket. Rishabh Pant scored a century in both innings, making him the second wicketkeeper-batter to achieve this feat in a Test, while Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill notched up three-figure marks in the first innings, while KL Rahul also chipped in in the second innings.

However, the efforts of the batters went in vain with India’s defeat to England in the Headingley Test. For the first time in Test cricket, a team with five individual centuries ended up on the losing side, surpassing Australia’s 4 tally of individual centuries in a losing cause against England in the 1928/29 Ashes.

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5. Failure to defend a strong total

Despite setting a challenging target of 371, Team India failed to defend it. This was largely due to a combination of lacklustre bowling, misfielding, dropped catches, and England’s resilient batting. The hosts chased down the target comfortably in the final session on Day 5, with key contributions from Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ben Stokes, and a match-sealing partnership between Joe Root and Jamie Smith.

India’s inability to maintain pressure on England's batting line-up, even after rain breaks and breakthrough wickets, proved costly. The visitors’ underlying concerns in closing out games even after gaining strong positions have been a concerning trend in overseas Tests.