Kumar puts on a seam-bowling masterclass
Bhuvneshwar Kumar's debut appearance at the Home of Cricket will also be the most memorable in his, so far, illustrious career. His seam-bowling guile was right on cue from the beginning and completely stunted England's progress.
Kumar got scalps of both openers: Alastair Cook and Sam Robson, with deliveries that curled away from the batsmen, induced half-drives, half-nudges and carried all the way into MS Dhoni's gloves. Kumar then got Ian Bell and Gary Ballance right when they looked set to shape up handy partnerships and made breakthroughs at crucial instances.
But the ball that got rid of Ben Stokes was the highlight of his staggering outing: it was an absolute ripper. Pitching middle and off, it sneaked back through the gates left opened between bat and pad to upset the timberwork. Kumar finished with figures of 6 for 82 that remain his career-best numbers, till date. With this scintillating spell, he ensured that England's lead only swelled to barely 24 runs.
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