Lord’s Test: Kohli & Co. falter as Anderson runs through India

On a day interrupted by showers, India was bowled out for 107, thanks in large part to James Anderson’s spell of five for 20.

Published : Aug 11, 2018 00:54 IST , London

 Wrecker-in-chief: James Anderson celebrates the dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane on Friday.
Wrecker-in-chief: James Anderson celebrates the dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane on Friday.
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Wrecker-in-chief: James Anderson celebrates the dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane on Friday.

Forecasting the weather in Britain, they say, is fairly simple: predict sunshine and showers and you can never be wrong. There was a bit of one and a lot of the other at Lord’s on Friday. There was also no shortage of action. James Anderson — hard to face on flat tracks but a nightmare in amenable conditions — took five for 20 as India was bowled out for 107 on the second day of the second Test.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

First the rain was a nuisance, coming and going, making for the kind of stop-start cricket that can never do batting sides any good. India lost the toss and duly suffered, slipping to 15 for three, with just over eight overs bowled by tea-time. Then the sun came out and India suffered some more as England's pace attack swung the ball around corners. Only 35.2 overs have been bowled in the match but the home side will believe that a result is still a possibility.

At the toss on the second morning — Day One’s washout was the first at the ground in 17 years — Joe Root had little hesitation putting India in. Look up and not down at Lord’s is the old adage, and the England captain would have been pleased by what he saw overhead. Woakes was preferred over Moeen Ali while India dropped Shikhar Dhawan for Cheteshwar Pujara and Umesh Yadav for Kuldeep Yadav.

Hard going

Anderson struck five balls in, packing off Murali Vijay with a devilish away-swinger. The ball was angled in from the Pavilion End; as Vijay prepared to play a flick through the on-side, it curled away late to clip off-stump. It took India 22 balls to score its first run, K. L. Rahul — promoted to open — driving Stuart Broad through the covers. Rahul did not do a great deal wrong a little later when he pushed forward to a delivery from Anderson; but the ball moved just enough to take the outside edge and the Karnataka batsman was gone for eight. The rain came down a minute later, forcing an early lunch and a two-hour break.

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When play resumed, there was time for just 10 deliveries before it started to drizzle. Cheteshwar Pujara and Kohli sprinted off, only to be recalled by the umpires because the rain had stopped. It was perhaps obvious, from the dark clouds in the corner, that it was going to pour soon but Aleem Dar and Marais Erasmus felt a restart was in order.

Pujara left stranded

India had nothing to gain but everything to lose from what was clearly going to be a short passage of play. And it took all of two balls before a third wicket fell, a result of some poor running between the wickets. Pujara was run-out yet again, left stranded two-thirds of the way down the pitch after Kohli changed his mind. Surely enough, the rain arrived, this time truly heavy.

It wasn't until some three hours later that play recommenced. Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane seemed briefly at ease before Woakes came on. The all-rounder has been troubled by injury of late but he was in his element here, with his superb wrist position and his whippy action. He troubled India's batsmen at once. Kohli edged one that Jos Buttler missed at second slip but was out next ball, caught by the same fielder. Woakes' delivery had swung late and Kohli, trying to work the ball through leg, nicked off.

From that point, it was an unedifying procession. Hardik Pandya edged Woakes behind twice in two balls; he was dropped first time but not the second. Dinesh Karthik was consumed by a wild in-ducker from Sam Curran, Rahane turned inside-out by Anderson, and Kuldeep trapped in front by the same bowler. Ishant Sharma soon became Anderson's 99th wicket at Lord's. He rejoiced; India has much to think about.

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