Opting to bat, England finished the first day of the opening Test against India on Friday at a commanding position 263/3, with England Captain Joe Root staying unbeaten on 128. Dominic Sibley and Root put on a 200-run partnership between them which stretched across all sessions of the day. The partnership was finally broken by India’s premiere pacer Jasprit Bumrah off the last ball of the day.
After taking two wickets in first session of the day, Indian bowlers could not get through the defenses of English batters for the large part of the day. Indian bowlers tried their level best to produce something miraculous from a Day 1 pitch which had little assistance for the bowlers. Even the edges from the bat fell short of the fielders. However, team India will look to get some wickets early on Day 2 and try to make a comeback in the four match test series.
The India-England cricket series starting on Friday in Chennai marks the first international sport in India since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. India is coming off a remarkable comeback series win in Australia with a depleted squad, and will have back captain Virat Kohli after a six-week paternity leave. Kohli amassed 655 runs in five Tests against England when it last visited in 2016-17, leading India to a 4-0 win. A 2-1 or better win would put India in the inaugural world Test championship final against New Zealand in England in June. England need a 3-0 win to stand a chance of making the final.
