Match Evenly Poised After First Two Hours: India 98/2 at Lunch
Edgbaston: In overcast conditions at Edgbaston, India adopted a cautious yet aggressive approach in the opening session of the second Test against England. At lunch, the visitors were 98 for 2, with Yashasvi Jaiswal unbeaten on a fluent 62.
Jaiswal held one end firmly, scoring his 62 off 69 balls with 11 boundaries. He lost his opening partner KL Rahul early, who was dismissed for just 2 runs. Their opening stand yielded only 15 runs before Rahul was clean bowled by a delivery from Chris Woakes that sharply jagged back in from outside off-stump.
After Rahul’s departure, Karun Nair was surprisingly sent in at No. 3. He counter-attacked effectively, adding 80 runs for the second wicket with Jaiswal. Nair scored a quick 31 off 50 balls (5 fours) during his 73-minute stay before edging a rising delivery from Brydon Carse to Harry Brook in the slips, moments before the lunch break.
At the interval, captain Shubman Gill was at the crease with Jaiswal, having just opened his account on 1.
Key Selections & Changes
India made three changes to their playing XI:
Jasprit Bumrah has been rested as part of workload management. He had already indicated that he wouldn’t feature in all five Tests of the series. Akash Deep replaces him in the XI.
Sai Sudharsan, who struggled on Test debut with scores of 0 and 30, has been dropped in favor of Nitish Kumar Reddy.
Shardul Thakur, underwhelming in the first Test, has been replaced by spin-bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar, as India opts to bolster their batting depth.
There was much speculation around Kuldeep Yadav’s inclusion, but the team management opted for Washington to provide more balance.
England, meanwhile, announced an unchanged XI from the first Test on Tuesday, sticking with the same combination that led them to victory.
Tribute to Wayne Larkins
LAs a mark of respect to former England cricketer Wayne Larkins, who passed away recently, both Indian and English players wore black armbands during the match.