3 players who starred and 2 who flopped for India in the 1st Test vs England ft. Shubman Gill & Jasprit Bumrah
Team India slumped to a disappointing defeat in the first Test against England at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad as the visitors edged them out by 28 runs in a tightly contested match.
Ollie Pope was the chief architect behind England's win, with the No. 3 batter striking an incredible 196 in tricky conditions in the second innings. Left-arm spinner Tom Hartley was another standout performer as he picked up nine wickets in the match.
India, meanwhile, were left to rue the poor performances of quite a few of their players. At the same time, however, there were a couple of notable displays that should receive credit.
On that note, here are three players who starred and two who flopped for Team India in the first Test against England.
#5 Star - Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah is just a class apart, and he proved that for the umpteenth time in Hyderabad. He picked up six wickets in the Test, including four in the second innings, to keep India's struggling bowling attack afloat.
Bumrah was on the mark throughout the contest, and his two-wicket burst to dismiss Ben Duckett and Joe Root went a long way to help the home side to get back in the contest. He also castled Ben Stokes with a ripper in the first essay.
Bumrah's workload will need to be managed carefully over the remainder of the series, with India in desperate need of his world-class services.
#4 Flop - Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill's place in the Test team has been under question for a while now, and he didn't do himself any favors with his display in Hyderabad.
Gill labored his way to 23 off 66 balls in the first innings, a knock that was devoid of any intent and confidence. He eventually walked back after a tame chip to midwicket. Things got worse for the 24-year-old in the second innings as he bagged a two-ball duck.
Gill hasn't done his potential any justice so far at the Test level and needs to step up his game immediately.
#3 Star - KS Bharat
This might be a slightly left-field choice, but KS Bharat did everything that was asked of him in the first Test.
Battling tricky conditions in both innings, Bharat notched up scores of 41 and 28. The keeper-batter was unlucky to be dismissed in both knocks, with one ball keeping low and another being a peach that couldn't have been kept out.
Bharat was up for the fight in the second innings and was also tidy behind the stumps. It was a hugely encouraging performance from the gloveman, who will probably be pushed out of the XI when Rishabh Pant returns.
#2 Flop - Shreyas Iyer
Another batter whose Test performances haven't been satisfactory recently, Shreyas Iyer endured a tough outing against England. And strangely, it wasn't even Mark Wood who troubled the batter.
Shreyas made 35 in the first innings but tried to heave Rehan Ahmed over the leg-side boundary, finding the only fielder stationed in the deep. Then, in the second innings, when he needed to attack, the 29-year-old tried to blunt the ball and was caught at slip after attempted a tame prod.
Shreyas' approach and manner of dismissals were both questionable in Hyderabad, and he didn't do enough in Virat Kohli's absence.
#1 Star - Ravichandran Ashwin
If there's one piece of criticism that can be leveled at Ravichandran Ashwin, it's that he arguably didn't do enough to counter the English batters' unconventional approach in both innings. Apart from that, though, the veteran was at the top of his game.
Ashwin picked up three wickets in each innings, troubling the English openers and even castling Stokes with a ripper. The off-spinner asked questions throughout the Test and was the only Indian spinner to not have a phase where he leaked runs.
Ashwin also put up a fight in the second innings with the bat and could've done the same in the first, had he not been run out by Ravindra Jadeja. Dancing down the track to be dismissed wasn't an ideal way to take a risk, but it was a gritty display from the experienced campaigner.