IND vs ENG 2021 2nd Test: 5 interesting stats to emerge after Day 1
After losing the toss, Team India dominated the opening day of the Lord's Test against England. Virat Kohli's men aggregated 276 runs in their 90 overs on Day 1, losing only three wickets.
KL Rahul shone for the visitors, scoring a magnificent century, while his opening partner Rohit Sharma missed out on his first Test century overseas by just 17 runs. Meanwhile, Cheteshwar Pujara's disappointing form with the willow continued; the no.3 batsman managed only nine runs off 23 deliveries.
Indian captain Virat Kohli worked hard for his 103-ball 42 before Ollie Robinson dismissed him. After that his deputy Ajinkya Rahane joined Rahul in the middle just before stumps on Day 1. James Anderson scalped two wickets for England, while Robinson picked up Kohli's scalp.
It was a great day for the Indian batsmen, and here are some interesting stats that emerged after the opening day of the Lord's Test:
#1 Rohit Sharma registers his best Test score in SENA countries
Before the Lord's Test, Rohit Sharma's highest Test score in games played in South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia was 72 (against New Zealand, Auckland 2014). The Indian batsman bettered that on Thursday at Lord's.
Opening the innings with KL Rahul, Sharma stitched up a fabulous partnership of 126 runs. The Mumbai Indians captain played the aggressor's role and scored 83 runs off 145 balls before James Anderson rattled his stumps.
#2 Cheteshwar Pujara's poor form in Test cricket continues
The last time Cheteshwar Pujara scored more than 25 runs in a Test innings was against England at the Chepauk back in February. India have played five Tests since then, and Pujara is yet to score even 25.
Once upon a time, Pujara was considered the 2.0 version of The Wall. However, his recent performances have put a question mark over his place in the Test team.
#3 KL Rahul becomes the first Indian opener to score three Test hundreds in SENA countries this century
KL Rahul became the first Indian batsman to score a century in this Test series. After touching the three-figure mark at Lord's, Rahul also became the first Indian opener to record three Test centuries in SENA countries this century.
Before the Lord's Test, Rahul had scored a century at the Sydney Cricket Ground against Australia in 2015 and a hundred against England at the Kennington Oval in 2018.
#4 Ishant Sharma joins Kapil Dev in an elite group of Indian fast bowlers
India only made a solitary change to their line-up for the Lord's Test. With Shardul Thakur missing out due to injury., Ishant Sharma was included in the playing XI as his replacement.
This is Sharma's fourth Test at the Mecca of Cricket. In the process, he has joined former Indian captain Kapil Dev among Indian fast bowlers to have played four Tests at Lord's.
#5 Virat Kohli inches closer to Allan Border's unwanted record
India captain Virat Kohli lost his eighth consecutive toss on English soil after his English counterpart Joe Root called the coin toss right once again and decided to bowl first at Lord's.
After losing his eighth toss in a row in England, Kohli has gone level with former Australian captains Ricky Ponting and Don Bradman on the list of captains who have lost the most tosses on English soil. Only Allan Border and Joe Darling are ahead of Kohli.