Cricket

Indians digging their own grave

It seemed a strange in many ways when India decided not to impose the follow on, even after getting a first innings lead of 319 runs.

They bowled out England for 345 after amassing a mammoth 664 in their first innings, but quite strangely they opted to bat again. India struggled in their second essay as they made it to 180 for 6 in 58 overs, far lesser and far slower than they would have wanted.

India were leading 1-0 in the series and had a strong hold on the third and final Test, but they seemed to have let England with a chance to save the match with their defensive tactics on day four.

India’s manager for the Test series, Chandu Borde, also seemed clueless and failed to provide any concrete reasons to justify India’s decision of not imposing the follow on.

His reasoning that teams batting last have done well also contradicts the team’s decision.

At the end of the day, India, however, were still very much on top, with England on 56 for no loss in their second dig, chasing a highly improbable 500 for victory, looking to play out 90 overs on the final day to hang on for the draw. What’s more, England have never batted out 110 overs in the final innings at The Oval.