Leeds [UK], June 23 : Former cricketer Michael Atherton didn't mince his words as he lampooned Ben Stokes-led England's tactical ploy for India's KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant on day four of the opening Test at Headingley.
Rahul and vice-captain Pant shifted the game's dynamics in India's favour by stitching up a 195-run stand, which pushed England back against the wall. With a blend of flamboyance and calmness, Rahul and Pant enthralled the spectators while adding to England's tantalised, inexperienced bowling attack's woes.
Rahul and Pant finished with 137(347) and 118(140), respectively, putting India in a position to control the play. Throughout their stay in the second innings, Stokes tried to limit the damage and switched to a defensive ploy. He took off slips at a venue where several wickets tumbled behind the stumps and allowed India to press the accelerator button.
"England's tactics were unusual at the start of the second session as Stokes went quite defensive, and there were no slips in place. The vast majority of wickets at Headingley come in the slips, and there weren't any when Pant edged two. India pressed the accelerator after that and put the hammer down," Atherton said on Sky Sports.
Former head coach and cricketer Ravi Shastri was all in praise of the "masterpiece" produced by Rahul and Pant. However, Shastri was quick to point out that the way Pant charged at the bowlers gave India a "headache" when identifying the ideal moment to declare.
"Pant has taken the game forward. He has given India a headache in terms of when should the declare and how many runs to they get. There is plenty of food for thought, but India will be very happy after a technical masterpiece from Rahul and the flamboyance and exuberance that you can't imagine from Pant," Shastri said.
The rollicking partnership concluded, and England's frontline spinner Shoaib Bashir pulled the curtains down on Pant's knock by luring him to hole the ball straight to Zak Crawley and punched his return ticket on 118(140).
Rahul soon joined Pant's company in the dressing room after trying to cut the ball but got outplayed by the extra bounce. He got cramped up and gave away an inside edge, which diverted the ball onto his stumps.