An act of deviation from the hackneyed script

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The nuts and bolts of India’s rout in United Kingdom up until the series opener in Birmingham are easy to grasp. Anyone who watched even a smidgen of the broadcast will chalk it up to their discomfort against the pace and bounce typical to English pitches. Whether overexposure to featherbeds during IPL or lack of experience in seaming conditions was the root of all infamy is for the management to decide, but it was as clear as day that their batsmanship was found wanting against velocity. For, the hosts bowled at an average speed of 89.9mph in the PowerPlay at Trent Bridge, their quickest ever in T20Is.

As Shubman Gill sat down to address the media in the dedicated press lounge at the Edgbaston Stadium, questions were in store regarding morale. Shall the hangover of six straight losses impact performance in the one-dayers, considering some of the members feature in both the sides? “I don’t think there’ll be any bad effect whatsoever. It’s a different format, different atmosphere, and a different goal.” the captain stated. England’s implosion from 61/0 to 80/5, courtesy a taste of their own medicine, and an expertly conducted chase was proof enough that the prevailing script stands null and void.

The earliest harbinger was a length ball from Jasprit Bumrah that jagged away to cannon into the shoulder of Ben Duckett’s bat. He needed pain-relieving spray to carry on. With Prasidh Krishna also hitting the deck from the other end, the afternoon was replete with plays-and-misses. Jacob Bethell was wet behind the ears in an opening capacity, so Duckett resorted to unorthodoxy after growing tired of the toil. Since firebrand teams like England and Australia have a tendency to single out the fresh faces, Gurnoor Brar came in the radar, his first two overs costing 26 thanks to a ramp, a hook, and a square cut that put into perspective why Duckett’s fast hands are the subject of much intrigue.

For Indian teams of yore, this would be a quintessential boiling point. The juncture where shoulders drop, tactics fray and their whole endeavour is basically submitted to the mercy of the opposition. However, the development of a fortified attack under ex-bowling coach Bharat Arun sowed the seeds of the magic about to unravel in reply to England’s combative attitude. Gurnoor fought fire with fire, bouncing out the southpaws with the help of appreciable catching in the deep.


His Gujarat Titans teammate Washington Sundar lauded the spirit of the youngster, whose arms spread wide in celebration to magnify a towering presence over Duckett. “With Gurnoor, you can always expect character. I’ve been seeing him quite closely in the last couple of years. He shows a lot of heart. No matter what, he always runs in hard every single ball, not just in games but even in practice sessions. Even if he’s not in the scheme of things, he still goes all out every time.”

“With such characters you always expect them to step up and contribute for the team, especially when it matters. The way he bowled today was fabulous, got those crucial wickets and played a major part in us winning the game.”

Notwithstanding the dominoes toppled, India had a lot on their plate. The axis to follow was a menace in itself, with Joe Root being the country’s most prolific run-scorer in the format and Harry Brook fresh off a 233-run partnership with Jos Buttler in Southampton’s dead rubber. India, playing tit for tat, summoned the poster boy of their recent dominance in world cricket. “Experience gives you a sense of calmness under pressure,” Gill spoke of the bulwarks returning to the fold. “Having been there and done that, doing well at times while failing on occasions, you mature and evolve as a player.” It was evident in how Bumrah made light work of Brook, currently the greatest all-format batter according to popular perception.

Duckett was only able to gain 7 runs off the 19 balls he faced from the Indian spearhead, his willow meeting air on seven counts whereas the edge was located in a couple of instances. Bumrah narrowed down the theatrics and cut to the chase in Brook’s case, the piquant fusion of away movement and steep bounce too hot to handle for the England skipper. That he managed to produce a peach upon sporting the collared blue after two and a half years underscores the class of the man.


For a fortnight Indian batters had danced to the tunes of fast bowling as Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue and Sam Curran shared the spoils equally. It was the visitors’ turn to barge into the wickets column, and the quick responsible for decimating England on debut in the subcontinent was never going to end up empty-handed when there was, in fact, assistance at his disposal. Prasidh induced a false shot from Buttler, whose channelization of the wristy Laxman didn’t quite go as planned, before waving Curran goodbye for a duck. Such was the penetration of India’s pace battery that India saw merit in giving Shivam Dubey an extended spell, at the expense of Washington, and he added the final flourish to their scorching exploits. Guilty of too many byes initially, KL Rahul redeemed himself with a worldie of a grab diving to his right, much to the horror of Will Jacks.

“Obviously the way T20 series went, I think this is the perfect start for us. And very happy with the way I performed today,” said Axar Patel, the nemesis of England’s tail and the partner of Washington in India’s second century partnership following the union of Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer, an alliance that established order in the aftermath of the chaos that defined the slam-bang assignment.

England had a rearguard effort come through their ranks as well, but the age-defying heroics of Liam Dawson and the usual consistency of Root wasn’t adequate to shield the fortress. It was the lone defeat for England in eight ODIs at Edgbaston since 2015, orchestrated by a trio determined to flip the narrative.

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