Virat Kohli, Spinners Help India To 246 Run Win

Ravichandran Ashwin and Jayant Yadav shared six wickets between them to guide India to a huge 246-run win against England on the fifth and final day of the second Test in Visakhapatnam, thereby securing a 1-0 lead in the five-match series on Monday.

Beginning the day with hopes of batting out for a draw in the second Test, England lost five wickets in the morning session and were eventually bowled out for 158.

Chasing an improbable 405 to win the second Test, Cook and Hameed added 75 for the first wicket but both fell before the close on Day 4.

The bowlers from the host team wrecked havoc as they left England tottering at 142 for seven wickets at lunch time earlier today.

When things got much more hard in the second innings, Virat again rose to the occasion and scored an important 81 to pose a hard target for the visitors.

Ashwin and debutant Jayant Yadav took three wickets each in England´s second innings, while fast bowler Mohammed Shami chipped in with two.

Laxman also praised the brilliant bowling effort from all five men: “The pitch was not exactly a rank turner, and while it was hard to bat on, the bowlers had to be patient”.

Speaking on fast bowler Stuart Broad’s injury, Cook said, “Playing Broad could be a big risk for him. The wickets were shared by the five bowlers, which gave Virat the option to rotate his men”. “So I don’t need to try any fancy things plus I also feel the more you stay on the wicket, the more time you spend, things start getting easier”, he said. A composed 35 in a 60+ run stand with Ashwin ushered India to 400 in the first innings.

Ben Stokes and Root held out until drinks after which Jayant Yadav came on from the media centre end. We played some good cricket at stages in these first two games.

Despite the defeat in Vizag, England captain Alastair Cook gave a vote of confidence to the tourists, saying that his counterpart Virat Kohli proved to be the difference between the two sides.

Captain marvel Virat Kohli: This year, Virat Kohli has been a beast in limited-overs cricket – well, when hasn’t he been – but he has been equally good, if not better, in Test matches. Ben Duckett’s rich strokeplay and inventive attitude will doubtless serve him well as his England career progresses, but in this situation – and particularly against his nemesis, Ashwin – those attributes had roughly the same value as an INR 500 note.