India vs England 2021: England Register Their Lowest Test Total Against India

The England team hit rock-bottom in the ongoing D/N Test against India at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. After making 112 in the first innings and bowling well enough to restrict India to 145, the visitors just couldn’t cope with the spin the Motera turf generated and was bundled out for their lowest Test score against India-81.

The Joe Root-led side has had a terrible time despite starting their tour of India with a 227-run victory in the first Test at Chennai. Joe Root had hit a double century, while James Anderson, Jack Leach, and Dom Bess made merry with the ball.

However, since then, things have been going downhill pretty fast, as England lost the second Test match by 317 runs as Indian spinners ran riot on a turning pitch at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, and Rishabh Pant shined with the bat, while Ravichandran Ashwin scored his fifth Test century as well.

Debutant Axar Patel picked a fifer on Test debut and England had no answers to the spin web woven around their batsmen. They did no favors to themselves by sending back Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali home as part of their rotational policy, while dropped in-form James Anderson for Stuart Broad in the second Test, who went wicketless.

Things Go From Bad To Worse In The Second Innings Of The Ahmedabad D/N Test

The third Test is being played with a pink ball under LED lights in the largest cricket stadium in the world, which seats more than 1.30 lakh people. England started off well as Joe Root won the toss and chose to bat. The visitors went in with three pacers and one spinner with Ben Stokes as the all-rounder. The home side picked three spinner and two pacers.

It was the spinners who made merry as England struggled their way to 112 in the first innings, despite Zak Crawley’s 53. Axar Patel took 6/38 and Ravichandran Ashwin picked three scalps.

India managed 145 in their 1^st do, despite Joe Root’s magical 5/8 and Jack Leach’s 4/54, as Rohit Sharma’s 66 and Virat Kohli’s 27 buoyed them enough to earn a lead of 33 runs

England had a great chance to put pressure on India with more than 3 days to go in the match. However, Axar Patel picked two wickets in his first three balls of England’s first over of the second innings to set the tone. Jonny Bairstow earned a pair in the Test, While Crawley made a 0.

Joe Root (19), Ben Stokes (25), and Ollie Pope (11) were the only England batters to reach double figures, as Axar finished with 5/32, while Ravichandran Ashwin picked 4/48. England folded like a pack of cards for just 81 runs, with a lead of 48 runs.

Ravichandran Ashwin also completed his 400 Test wickets and also reached the mark of 600 wickets in international cricket.

This was England’s lowest Test total against India, eclipsing their 101 at the Oval in 1971, 102 at Leeds in 1986, and 102 at Mumbai in 1981.

It was also their lowest Test score in India with the previous worst been- 102 (Mumbai, 1981) 112 (Ahmedabad 2021) 134 (Chennai, 2021).

Also Read: India vs England 2021: Very Surprised That India Weren’t Super Aggressive In The First Session – Shane Warne