India had a tough start on a rain-hit Day 1 of the fifth Test versus England at The Oval after England stand-in captain Ollie Pope won the toss and put them to bat. Batting first in overcast conditions, the visitors lost early wickets and never really got going. England’s bowlers, led by Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue, made full use of the helpful conditions.
Yashasvi Jaiswal was the first to fall, trapped for just 2 in the fourth over of the innings bowled by Atkinson. KL Rahul followed him soon after, chopping one onto the stumps for 14. Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan looked to steady things, but the weather kept interrupting the game. Lunch was taken early with India at 72/2.
After the break, things only got worse for India. Shubman Gill scored 21 runs and was run out in a mix-up. Sudharsan was dismissed by a beauty from Tongue after scoring 38 runs and Ravindra Jadeja also fell cheaply at 9. Dhruv Jurel too perished at 19 as he threw his wicket away off Gus Atkinson. At stumps, India were 204 for 6, with Karun Nair and Washington Sundar unbeaten.
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India’s Batting Sinks Under Clouds and Pressure on Day 1 of Oval TestÂ
Atkinson, who was making his comeback from an injury and played his first Test match of the series, gave England an early breakthrough, dismissing Jaiswal who was given LBW after England took a review. Woakes then got Rahul, who tried to cut but chopped it back on. With two early wickets, India were in trouble.
Captain Gill looked confident and crossed Sunil Gavaskar’s tally for most runs by an Indian captain in a Test series. But he threw his wicket away with a poor call for a run. Atkinson picked the ball in his follow-through and hit the stumps to run Gill out. That left India at 83/3.
Soon after, Tongue got into the act. He bowled a brilliant spell, getting Sudharsan caught behind with one that nipped back in. Then, he dismissed Jadeja with another delivery that shaped in and took the edge. Jurel hit a few runs but gave his wicket away while trying to be aggressive off Atkinson and was caught by Harry Brook at second slip.
Nair and Sundar survived the rest of the session. They formed an unbeaten 51-run partnership. Nair scored his first half-century in Test cricket in almost eight years.
India finished the day at 204/6 with Nair and Sundar unbeaten on 52 and 19 runs respectively.
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What to Expect on Day 2?
India will hope for a solid partnership between Nair and Sundar to get them to a respectable first-innings total. They will need to apply themselves again on a pitch still offering movement.
England will look to wrap up the Indian innings quickly. Tongue and Atkinson have been the standout bowlers so far.
The weather could still be a factor with forecasts predicting more rain.
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