India Vs England Dharamshala Test Day 1 Highlights:
The spinners of the Indian cricket team tore through the English batting lineup at Dharamshala. The visiting team was all out for 218 runs in 57.4 overs during this match. Kuldeep Yadav grabbed five wickets, and the Centurion Ravichandran Ashwin secured four. Ravindra Jadeja also claimed a dismissal. England looked formidable at one stage on the first day but crumbled with five wickets falling within just 8 runs, swaying the match in favor of Rohit's brigade.
The Dharamshala Test begins today (March 7th). England's captain Ben Stokes won the toss and opted to bat first. Initially, it appeared Stokes made a wise decision witnessing England's solid start, but Kuldeep Yadav performed the unexpected for the English team.
It was remarkable that Kuldeep Yadav, whose participation was speculated, turned the match in India's favor on day one. Dharamshala has proven to be a 'lucky ground' for him.
In this match, after winning the toss, England decided to bat first. Ben Duckett (27) and Zak Crawley (79) provided an excellent start, putting on 64 runs for the first wicket. This is where Kuldeep's magic began, first dismissing Duckett. He then trapped Ollie Pope (11) in his spin web. It was a blow to England who were at a 100-run total.
At one point England had 137 runs for 2 wickets, but Crawley's wicket by Kuldeep on the same score triggered a batting collapse. Jonny Bairstow, playing his 100th test, also fell to Kuldeep at the score of 175, marking Kuldeep's fourth success. This sparked the tumbling of England's batting lineup. Joe Root (26) and Ben Stokes (0) soon followed, becoming victims of Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav respectively. With Stokes' dismissal, Kuldeep completed his five-wicket haul.
Subsequently, R Ashwin worked his magic, dismissing Tom Hartley (06) and Mark Wood (0) as England's last five wickets folded within 8 runs, plummeting from 175 to 183.
England's Scorecard and Kuldeep Yadav's Luck at Dharamshala
Dharamshala's ground has been lucky for the Indian team and chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav. India has played only one test match on this ground, which resulted in victory. This match was against Australia in March 2017 under Ajinkya Rahane's captaincy, and India won by 8 wickets. Kuldeep made his test debut in this match and took four wickets in the first innings.
India's Playing XI for Dharamshala Test:
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravindra Jadeja, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wicket-keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah.
England's Playing XI for Dharamshala Test:
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (Captain), Ben Foakes (wicket-keeper), Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, Shoaib Bashir and James Anderson.
Schedule for India Vs England Test Series:
1st Test: January 25-29, Hyderabad (England won by 28 runs) 2nd Test: February 2-6, Visakhapatnam (India won by 106 runs) 3rd Test: February 15-19, Rajkot (India won by 434 runs) 4th Test: February 23-27, Ranchi (India won by 5 wickets) 5th Test: March 7-11, Dharamshala
