The England supporters filed into the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium first thing believing the City of Destiny could live up to the nickname but by 12.50pm local time, as Ben Stokes mooched back to the pavilion muttering under his breath about his dismissal, such thoughts had disappeared like the morning’s sea haze.
England were already struggling to stay afloat by this point, an optimistic attempt to chase down what would have been a record 399 to win now listing at 220 for six after India had repeatedly punctured holes in their hull. And yet while Stokes remained out in the middle with a back catalogue of such feats behind him so, too, did an outside chance.
But then it came, Ben Foakes clipping a single into the leg side, only for his partner to be slow out of the blocks. A frictionless direct hit followed from Shreyas Iyer at midwicket – the kind of prowling intervention usually associated with the absent Ravindra Jadeja – and Stokes found himself an inch short of the line when a dive might have saved him.
And so it was back to the bucket hat for the England captain as he watched India pick off the final three wickets to claim a 106-run victory and ensure a 1-1 scoreline after two Tests. The hosts were good value for it, too, with Yashasvi Jaiswal’s double century in the first innings and 104 from Shubman Gill in the second representing two outliers in a match of middling scores. That youth stood up was a boon for a side missing Virat Kohli and Jadeja.
Those absentees – plus no Mohammed Shami or Rishabh Pant – did make this Test a missed opportunity for England. And in the wash-up, despite characterful performances from their young spinners and the old pro Jimmy Anderson, Zak Crawley top-scoring with 76 and 73 in each innings pointed to why it was not grasped. But by the same token, it was hard not to acknowledge the chief difference: Jasprit Jasbirsingh Bumrah.
England pitched up in India expecting a spin cycle and yet as they head into a nine-day break with families back in Abu Dhabi, India’s greatest fast bowler will surely dominate discussions. Bumrah was phenomenal here, that six-wicket burst of reverse swing on day two likely to have run through most opponents. It will be spoken about for years to come – the same tones usually reserved for the likes of Waqar Younis – and not least the feet-seeking yorker that turned a couple of Ollie Pope’s stumps into circus tumblers.
It was fitting that Bumrah should inflict the coup de grâce when Tom Hartley’s off pole was detonated for a gutsy 36. England were 292 all out in 69.2 overs, with Bumrah rightly named player of the match after taking his overall stash to nine. Among the three on the final day was Jonny Bairstow lbw on the brink of lunch. Compounding Kuldeep Yadav’s removal of Crawley four balls earlier – a decision that had many surprised by three reds on Hawk-Eye – it once again underlined the unique weapon at Rohit Sharma’s disposal.
Because the 30-year-old really is like no other in the circuit, those torpedoes whiplashed down from a hyperextending action that is near‑impossible to replicate in the nets. He has a succulent slower ball, too, one that led to Foakes chipping back a return catch during the final rites. Perhaps Crawley, the one player to push back with some lasered drives and whips through midwicket, can offer his teammates some pointers here.
Not that a broader overhaul of approach will follow from this England team, wedded as they are to the aggression that has lifted their results these past two years. This much was clear from what was always a mountain of a run chase, one in which they resumed on 67 for one with six sessions remaining and set off at a brisk pace. But even on a pitch still playing true in the main, it was always hard to see how nine wicket-taking deliveries or batter errors would not materialise before the summit.
That said, few expected Joe Root to fall into the latter category. After Pope followed Rehan Ahmed’s early departure – Sharma producing a wonderful reflex catch at first slip to remove England’s vice-captain on 23 – Root lasted just 10 frenzied balls. He raided 16 runs trying to push back the field before falling to an ugly swipe against the angle of Ravichandran Ashwin from around the wicket. This was Test wicket number 499 for the spinner, his 500th denied on the day when Hartley was given out caught off the forearm and reviewed successfully.
Root did have a busted right pinkie, an injury which may in part explain his strange knock. But after scores of 29, two and five before this – Bumrah twice masterfully working him over among these – it has been a low‑key start by a player who has now passed 1,000 Test runs in India. There is of course the extra burden of bowling in this series, something he has dutifully taken on but looked increasingly weary from also.
Perhaps this break before the third Test in Rajkot will do Root good, even if those of us watching what is already a compelling series will be hoping the time passes quickly.
