Published: Aug 15, 2018, 01:35 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 15, 2018, 01:35 PM (IST)
England have dominated world No. 1 India in the ongoing five-Test series. They sealed a close win at Edgbaston and then bossed over their opponents in the 2nd Test at Lord’s for a massive win to take 2-0 lead. Naturally, hope of a 5-0 whitewash is slowly gathering pace but Jonny Bairstow reckons there’s still a lot more cricket left to play in the series and conditions can change.
England pacers toyed with the Indian batsmen at Lord’s aided by rainy, overcast conditions. India managed 107 and 130 in their two innings – failing to even match 137* that allrounder Chris Waokes recorded when England came to bat. In fact, it was Bairstow (93) and Waokes who guided England out of danger after India had reduced them to 131/5 at one stage.
While Bairstow acknowledges that England have made the best use of the conditions but observed that taking India for granted could be dangerous. “Yes, we have exploited the conditions and we know how to play in home conditions, but I do not think you can say that India are vulnerable,” he told ‘The Daily Telegraph’. “They are the number one side in the world for a reason and there is a lot of cricket still to be played in the series.”
Consider the failure of Indian batsmen against the swinging and seaming deliveries in the opening two Tests, it looks certain England aren’t going to sit back and offer any relief to the touring party. A 5-0 win definitely looks possible on the cards, as of now. But Bairstow isn’t looking too far ahead with three Tests still remaining. “It is too early to be talking about 5-0. The weather could get hot again, the pitches at Southampton and the Oval could be dry. We definitely will not be taking our foot off the pedal,” he said.
In a massive relief to Ben Stokes and England cricket team, a court on Tuesday found the allrounder not guilty of affray after his involvement in a brawl in September last year. Immediately after the decision, he was added to the England’s sqaud for the third Test that starts from Saturday.
Stokes, 27, missed England’s innings and 159-run victory in the 2nd Test against India due to his trial. He was the game-changer with a brilliant spell on Day 4 of the opening Test at Edgbaston resulting in England’s 31-run win.
Bairstow has welcomed the decision saying his England teammate has already suffered enough. “I’m really happy that the verdict has come out as it has for English cricket. It’s big for him. It’s been a long 10 months for him, for his family. (I’m) delighted and hopefully we can see him back in an England shirt very, very soon because we saw the impact that he had at Edgbaston only a couple of weeks ago in the first Test.”
