ENG vs IND, 4th Test: 5 Talking Points From India’s Outing on Day 2 at Old Trafford

England vs India's Day 2 of Manchester Test saw Pant’s brave return, Thakur-Sundar’s key stand, and India posting a respectable total. England responded strongly, with Duckett and Crawley’s opening stand putting the hosts in a commanding position.

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Key Highlights of India's Day 2 Outing at Old Trafford

Day 2 of the Old Trafford Test between England and India was quite eventful as it was uneven proceedings, given that both sides enjoyed dominant phases, with India with the bat early on, and England responding strongly later in the day in Manchester on Thursday, July 24.

After bundling out India for 358 in 114.1 overs, England posted a total of 225/2 in 46 overs, with Ollie Pope and Joe Root batting on 20 and 42 and trailing by 133 runs, as the hosts ended Day 2 on a strong note. Ben Duckett was the top scorer of the day with 94. For India, Ravindra Jadeja and Anshul Kamboj picked a wicket each.

On that note, let’s take a look at five key takeaways from India’s outing on Day 2 in the Manchester Test.

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1. Rishabh Pant returns to bat despite a foot injury

Despite uncertainty over his further participation in the Manchester Test, Rishabh Pant made his brave return to the crease with a fractured toe on Day 2. After undergoing scans and treatment at a hospital, revealing that the southpaw had fractured his toe after Chris Woakes’s delivery hit his right foot, Pant walked out to a standing ovation from Old Trafford spectators.

Resuming his batting on 37 off 48 balls, Rishabh Pant completed his third fifty of the Test series and 18th half-century of his Test career and played a gritty innings of 54 off 75 balls, including 3 fours and 2 sixes, before his valiant stay at the crease ended after Jofra Archer dismissed him. However, Pant’s decision to continue his batting despite a fracture in his toe was hailed by fans and experts.

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2. Shardul Thakur's valuable knock

Shardul Thakur was dropped from the playing XI after the first Test at Headingley before making a comeback to the team following a knee injury that ruled Nitish Kumar Reddy out of the remainder of the series. Thakur justified his return to the side with a valuable innings that steadied India’s ship.

Walked in to bat after Sai Sudharsan’s dismissal at 235/4 and finished the Day 1 on 19 while taking India past the 250-run mark, and continued with his batting on Day 2, playing an innings of 41 off 88 balls before he was dismissed by England skipper Ben Stokes at 314/6. His innings provided stability in the middle-order, especially in the absence of Rishabh Pant, and helped India build a respectable first-innings total.

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3. Crucial Shardul Thakur-Washington Sundar Partnership

Shardul Thakur and Washington Sundar stitched together a crucial partnership to keep India’s scoreboard ticking and steadied the innings, adding depth to the visitors’ total before tailenders. After Ravindra Jadeja’s dismissal at 266/5, the fans and spectators thought that England's bowling attack, led by Ben Stokes, would dominate from there on and wrap up India’s innings soon.

When Washington Sundar walked in to bat and joined Shardul Thakur at the crease, the duo showed great composure under pressure and batted with a measured approach. The pair formed a crucial 48-run stand for the sixth wicket to take India past the 300-run mark before Shardul’s stay at the crease ended at 314/6. Then, Pant joined in, and Washington Sundar carried on with his batting until he was dismissed for 20 at 337/7.

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4. Indian pacers struggle to contain England's scoring rate

India did not have an ideal start to their first innings bowling as pacers struggled to control England’s aggressive scoring rate, allowing the hosts to build momentum early on Day 2. England openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley dominated the afternoon session as they guided England to a total of 77/0 in 14 overs at a scoring rate of over 5 per over.

Pacers, including Anshul Kamboj, Mohammed Siraj, and Shardul Thakur, were struggling to find the right lengths and often bowling too full length, which led to Ravi Shastri expressing his disappointment on air, slamming the Indian pacers for their ‘rubbish’ bowling. Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley formed a 166-run opening partnership until Ravindra Jadeja removed the latter for 84.

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5. Anshul Kamboj gets his maiden international wicket

Anshul Kamboj kicked off his international career with a maiden wicket in India’s first innings bowling. Kamboj was added to the squad as a cover after injury setbacks to pacers Arshdeep Singh and Akash Deep. Despite having Prasidh Krishna in the squad, Kamboj was handed a Test debut, receiving cap no.318 from Deep Dasgupta.

In his debut bowling for Team India, Kamboj struggled to find his rhythm as he conceded 35 runs without taking a wicket in the first overs of his spell. However, in the 39th over and 8th over of his spell, the 24-year-old pacer from Haryana finally got his first wicket of his international career by dismissing well-set Ben Duckett for 94. Kamboj finished Day 2 with figures of 1/48 in 10 overs.