India vs England: Ben Duckett to the fore as Bazball chalks up another epic victory

Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley added 181 runs for the first wicket in the 371 chase (ICC Photo)

Chasing isn’t what it used to be. In the 148 years that Test cricket has been played, this was only the 10th instance of a team chasing 370 or more to win a match. As many as eight of those chases have come in the 21st century. And half of them have come in the last decade. A combination of better pitches and changed batting mindsets have meant that totals once considered out of reach are now fair game.

A generation or two ago, only the very elite teams would even contemplate trying to chase close to 350 on the final day of a Test. West Indies did it at Lord’s in 1984, breezing past a target of 342 in just 66.1overs, as Gordon Greenidge tattooed the boundary boards with his violent square-cuts in an unbeaten 214 (242 balls).

For this England team, however, this isn’t something new. Three years ago, at Edgbaston, an Indian team led by Jasprit Bumrah set them 378 to win. India’s attack then was almost the same as that which played at Headingley, with one exception – Prasidh Krishna has replaced Mohammed Shami.

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Back then, with the two Yorkshire boys – Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow – both making centuries and adding an unbeaten 269 for the fourth wicket, India didn’t even get to take the second new ball. This time, they did, but they may as well not have bothered given how quickly Jamie Smith ended the game.

There is no secret to a big run chase. You need at least one significant partnership. on Tuesday, that came from Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley, who added 188 at a lively tempo. They played judiciously against fiery early spells from Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj and then cashed in on loose offerings from both Prasidh and Shardul Thakur.

Ravindra Jadeja had rough to aim at on a pitch that was taking turn, but found himself stymied by the sheer variety of angles at which Duckett was able to employ the reverse-sweep. India didn’t help themselves with the catching either. Bumrah put down a tough chance off his own bowling from Crawley, and Duckett was reprieved when Yashasvi Jaiswal couldn’t hold on after running in from the deep.

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England won, though, because they wouldn’t take a backward step. Each batter that came out played with intent and moved the game along. Despite having such a huge total to defend, India seldom looked like favourites after the opening hour. Stokes’s wicket, to a rash reverse off Jadeja could have been pivotal, but the unflustered Joe Root and Smith knocked off the remaining 71 at nearly a run a ball.

Ultimately, England won because they had the batting depth India didn’t. Stokes could play as he did because he knew there were handy batters still to come. India lost 7-41 in the first innings and 6-31 in the second to surrender a game they had no business losing. Even when India were the width of the Pacific ahead on the fourth afternoon, Stokes and company didn’t stop believing. When India stumbled, they pounced. One more victory for Bazball, and much to ponder for India.