Indian batting lineup crumbled on Day 4 of the Hyderabad Test against debutant spinner Tom Hartley as the Rohit Sharma-led side lost the match by 28 runs. After a batting collapse, Ravichandran Ashwin and Srikar Bharat infused life into the run chase. But Hartley returned to dismiss both and all eyes were on Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah. The tailenders took India close to the target but the inexperience got the better of Siraj and he got stumped trying to advance down the track. In the post-match presentation, Rohit lauded the lower order and revealed that he wanted them to take the game to Day 5.
As Bharat was dismissed the play was extended by an extra half an hour. Stokes pounced on the opportunity. After some resistance from Siraj and Bumrah, Hartley managed to take the winning wicket to help the visitors take a 1-0 lead in the five-Test series.
“Overall, we failed as a team. We didn't bat well enough. I wanted them (Siraj and Bumrah) to take the game to the fifth day. The lower order fought really well there. You need to be brave enough, which I thought we weren't” Rohit said in the post-match presentation.
Rohit found it hard to pinpoint where India lost the game but praised Ollie Pope for his magnificent 196-run knock.
“Hard to pinpoint where it went wrong. Having got a lead of 190, we thought we were very much in the batting. Exceptional batting, one of the best I have seen in Indian conditions by an overseas batter, Ollie Pope played a brilliant knock. We bowled in the right areas. The bowlers executed the plans really well, you got to take your hat off to Pope and say well played,” the 36-year-old said.
This was India's first loss at home after taking a lead of over 100 in the first innings. India's score of 436 is their second-highest total in a home defeat. Also, the 28-run defeat is India's narrowest defeat by runs against England in Test cricket. The previous lowest of 31 runs against England came in 2018 at Edgbaston, Birmingham.
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