NEW DELHI: Debutant left-arm spinner
Tom Hartley
showcased his talent with a remarkable performance, claiming a sensational 7 for 62, as England secured an improbable and famous 28-run victory over India in the first Test of the five-match series at Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
Ollie Pope
's masterful knock of 196 played a pivotal role in England's resurgence, as they managed to post 420 runs in their second innings despite conceding a 190-run lead, thereby setting India a challenging target of 231.
However, Hartley's exceptional bowling display shattered India's hopes, as he dismantled their batting lineup to achieve his maiden seven-wicket haul in Test cricket, restricting the hosts to a mere 202 runs.
With this triumph, England takes a commanding 1-0 lead in the five-game series.
Former England captain
Nasser Hussain
praised Hartley's magnificent show, emphasizing that India's defeat in the Hyderabad Test should serve as a wake-up call for the team.
"India will probably rue their first innings. They got 436 but actually they could have got a lot more if not for some sloppy dismissals. They will come back. They are a very fine side and history tells you it will be tough for England here," Hussain wrote in his column for 'Sky Sports'.
"But it is a wake-up call for India as England have shown Bazball can work in these conditions," he said.
Chasing 231 for victory, the Indian batters failed to put up a fight in the fourth innings and could muster 202.
"It shows they (England) have great self-belief. They have great belief in the way they are playing the game and do things their own way. They don't worry about outside noise, that other people would have selected other cricketers, that people thought they should have had warm-up matches.
"What I like about them is their stubbornness. If you doubt them, they'll double down on it and go even more stubborn. I think that is a good thing because if you're constantly listening to all the noise, all that's written and said, you flicker from one theory to another," Hussain wrote.