NEW DELHI: After an intense two-month long Test series, hosts India came out triumphant against England with a commanding scoreline of 4-1. The hosts had already sealed their 17th successive home series win after their victory in the fourth Test in Ranchi.
The thrashing of the visitors by an innings and 64 runs in Dharamsala showed the ruthlessness of the Rohit Sharma-led young Indian side.
In the absence of stalwarts like
Virat Kohli
,
KL Rahul
(after the first Test, which India lost) and Mohammed Shami, India gave Test debut caps to five players. And with most of the new faces shining on their debut series, captain Rohit steered India to series victory and also to the top of the ICC World Test Championship standings.
The series witnessed quite a few impactful performances from the Indian cricketers. From established stars to the next generation players, here are India's heroes of the dominating series win over England:
Yashasvi Jaiswal
The absolute star of the Indian team in the series was young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, who broke an array of records en route to his monumental 712 runs in nine innings. Jaiswal accumulated his runs at an average of 89, smashing two hundreds and three fifties in the series. He made sure that the series is remembered not as 'Bazball' but as 'Yashball', scoring his runs at an astonishing strike rate of almost 80. With two back-to-back double hundreds, the youngster made the series his own.
Stats: M 5 | R 712 | HS 214* | Ave. 89 | SR 79.91 | 2x100s | 3x50s
Shubman Gill
The 24-year old top-order batter came back strongly after poor start to finish as the second highest run-getter in the series. Shubman Gill was trolled after the first three innings, which read 23, 0, 34, but roared back with a second-innings hundred at Visakhapatnam. Gill, who decided to bat at No.3 position, did not look back after that. A 91 in Rajkot was followed by an unbeaten 52 in a tense run chase in Ranchi, where India sealed the series. He signed off with a hundred in the series finale in Dharamsala.
Stats: M 5 | R 452 | HS 110 | Ave. 56.5 | SR 59.47 | 2x100s | 2x50s
Rohit Sharma
Like his former opener Gill, captain Rohit Sharma was also criticised for his poor start to the series with the bat. Rohit too came back with a bang, hitting 131 in Rajkot. After a crucial 55 in the second innings of the Ranchi Test, Rohit ended the campaign with a majestic hundred in Dharamsala as India wrapped up the series with a commanding innings victory. Rohit finished the series as fourth highest run-getter with 400 runs. In the absence of many seniors in the team, Rohit shone in his captaincy too commandeering the young side to a triumphant series.
Stats: M 5 | R 400 | HS 131 | Ave. 44.44 | SR 68.51 | 2x100s | 1x50s
Ravindra Jadeja
All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja continued his excellent form with both bat and ball, scoring more than 200 runs and taking 19 wickets in the five-match series. In just six innings, Jadeja scored 232 runs with the help of one hundred and one fifty. And with the ball in hand, the spinner grabbed 19 wickets with a best figures of 5/41. The highlight of Jadeja's campaign in the series was when he took a fifer and scored a hundred at his home ground Rajkot.
Stats:
Batting: M 4 | R 232 | HS 112 | Ave. 38.66 | SR 44.61 | 1x100s | 1x50s
Bowling: M 4 | W 19 | BBI 5/41 | Ave. 25.05 | Econ. 3.24 | SR 46.26
Ravichandran Ashwin
The veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin again proved why he is still the chief wrecker-in-chief for India, especially in the home conditions. Ashwin, who celebrated his 100th Test appearance in the final match in Dharamsala, finished as the top wicket-taker of the series with 26 scalps. With two five-wicket hauls, Ashwin achieved a few massive milestones in the series, including breaching the 500 wicket mark, and becoming Indian with most Test five-wicket hauls (36).
Stats: M 5 | W 26 | BBI 5/51 | Ave. 24.8 | Econ. 4.12 | SR 36.11
Jasprit Bumrah
The Bumrah magic continued in the series as the pacer ended as joint third highest wicket-taker of the series with 19 strikes. He was by far the most successful pacer in the series, despite taking a rest from the fourth Test in Ranchi, with England legend James Anderson, who became the only pacer with 700 Test victims, finishing a distant second best pacer with 10 wickets. Bumrah has the best bowling figures of 6 for 45 in the Visakhapatnam Test, leading the resurgence of the Indian team after losing the first match in Hyderabad.
Stats: M 4 | W 19 | BBI 6/45 | Ave. 16.89 | Econ. 3.09 | SR 32.78
Kuldeep Yadav
The left-arm wrist spinner, Kuldeep Yadav, was one of the most impactful players of the series. After missing the Hyderabad Test, which India lost, Kuldeep made an immediate impact with crucial wickets from the second Test onwards. For his five-wicket haul in the Dharamsala Test, he won the Man-of-the-Match award and ended the series as joint-third highest wicket-taker with 19 scalps. What impressed most was his dogged batting display in the series, often playing crucial parts in India's rearguard revivals. His scores of 27 in Rajkot, 28 in Ranchi and 30 in Dharamsala were all impactful knocks down the order.
Stats: M 4 | W 19 | BBI 5/72 | Ave. 20.15 | Econ. 3.35 | SR 36.05
Future of Team India: The debutants
With a few senior players missing from the squad, five Indians got the chance to wear the coveted India Test caps for the first time in the series. The five India debutants are: Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Akash Deep, Rajat Patidar and Devdutt Padikkal.
Except for Patidar, who scored 63 runs @10.5 in six innings, all the other four had a dream start to their career. Padikkal, who replaced Patidar in the final Test, started his career with a brilliant 65 in Dharamsala, and Akash Deep, who filled the slot left by a resting Bumrah, grabbed three wickets in the only innings he bowled in the series.
Sarfaraz and wicket-keeper Jurel made their debuts together in the Rajkot Test and impressed all with their exploits. Sarfaraz scored 62 & 68* in the debut match, while Jurel started with a composed 46.
Sarfaraz ended the series with 200 runs with three quick fifties and impressed all with his attacking intent, scoring his runs at an impressive strike rate of 79.36.
Jurel came on his own in his second Test, scoring 90 & 39* to play a crucial role in India's victory in Ranchi. Jurel was also praised for his keeping skills along with his calm batting approach with the lower order batters.
Sarfaraz Khan: M 3 | R 200 | HS 68* | Ave. 50.00 | SR 79.36 | 3x50s
Dhruv Jurel: M 3 | R 190 | HS 90 | Ave. 63.33 | SR 53.67 | 1x50s
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