India spinner Kuldeep Yadav picked Zak Crawley’s dismissal on Day 1 of the fifth Test against England in Dharamsala as his favourite. Kuldeep said that Crawley was a good player of spin bowling, and it needed a magical delivery to get him out, which he managed to produce.
Notably, Kuldeep bowled an outstanding beauty to dismiss Zak Crawley and denied him hundred on day one of the fifth Test in Dharamsala on Thursday, March 7. Kuldeep bowled outside off-stump and induced a drive from Crawley, who was on 79 from 108 balls. The ball spun rapidly, confusing the England opener before crashing into his leg stump.
Kuldeep has been in formidable form with the ball since the Ranchi Test. His brilliance was further evident as he bagged his 4th 5-wicket-haul in Test cricket on Day 1 of the Dharamsala Test. Speaking about the dismissal, Kuldeep, while acknowledging the potential danger that Crawley brings to the crease, could not hold himself back from praising the magical turn of the ball.
“I liked the Zak Crawley wicket… I mean, he is someone who has batted really well throughout the series, and he’s a good player of spin, and to get him out, You have to produce some magic on the field. And that was a beautiful ball,” Kuldeep told Sports18.
IND vs ENG 5th Test: Day 1 report
Despite their steady start on Day 1 of the fifth Test, none of the England batters were able to make full use of their decision to bat first after winning the toss. India’s spinners-duo of R Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav ran through the England batting order, with none of them being able to cross the 30-run mark except Crawley. From being 170 for 3 towards the end of the second session, the visitors ended up getting bowled out for 218 runs.
England’s popular Bazball approach has come under heavy fire for its performance in the ongoing Test series, with criticism from fans and former greats alike. With Ashwin’s figures of 4/51 and Kuldeep’s 5/72, England’s struggles against India’s bowling prowess continued.
India, have dealt a significant blow to England’s hopes of securing a consolatory win in the final Test, having already clinched the series 3-1 with their victory in Ranchi. England will hope to bounce back into the Dharamsala Test, in their hopes of bagging some important WTC points.
With skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill still standing strong at the crease, India trail by just 83 runs at stumps on Day 1 of the Dharamsala Test.
