India v Bangladesh only Test - India Player Ratings

Though it might not appear to be as convincing as one of those against England or New Zealand but Team India would definitely be satisfied with their effort in the one-off Test against Bangladesh. The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad that had proved a helpful one for the pacers in the Ranji Trophy was rolled a lot flatter for this Test and thus there was little on offer for the bowlers. Indian bowlers despite that managed to bowl out the visitors twice in over 220 overs to win the match.

Murali Vijay’s hundred at the top of the innings with Virat Kohli’s double and Wriddhiman Saha’s second Test ton – fifties from Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja helped them post a mammoth total. Bangladesh were solid in their reply were short by 299 runs. A quick second knock and India asked them to chase 459. The visitors resisted in the second innings as well but the No.1 team was once again up to the mark to win yet another Test match at home.

Murali Vijay – 7/10

This man has been in form forever. Murali Vijay turns up series after series and score runs consistently. He gave the team a good start once again in the first innings of this Test. Though his partner KL Rahul got out early – Vijay saw through the early attack from Taskin Ahmed and co. and once he got going there was no stopping him from scoring his 9th Test hundred.

He was dismissed soon after on 108 and couldn’t add more than 7 runs in the second inning but in all was a successful match for the opener.

Also read- India vs Bangladesh, Only Test Day 5: 5 Talking Points

KL Rahul 2/10

KL Rahul needs to start finding the answers before people start to question. Though his form isn’t an issue he needs to figure out ways to get through that initial phase of uncertainty. In his brief career, the trend has been either single digit scores or big hundreds.

After a 199 in the previous Test, he could only score 7 and 10 in the Hyderabad Test. Rahul went for an expansive drive in the first innings that took an inside edge onto his stumps in the second he was caught behind off the same bowler pretty early in the inning.

Cheteshwar Pujara 8/10

Cheteshwar Solid Pujara – Team India’s number three has not only settled into his role for the team but has also developed this demeanor which brings a sense of calmness and stability when he is out there in the middle. He scored 83 in the first innings and formed a crucial third-wicket partnership with Vijay.

Though he yet again missed out on a hundred the knock was very important for the team. In the second inning, India needed quick runs and he was there to deliver just what the doctor ordered 54 from 58 balls and he had done his job with precision and conviction once again.

Virat Kohli 9/10

Another Test win under his belt and yet another Man of the Match award for the Indian skipper. Virat Kohli at the moment is playing his cricket like he was born for this. He has shown glimpses of greatness right through his career but the level he has attained at present has no parallels. Virat showed just how easy scoring runs was for him in the first knock scoring a double hundred with complete dominance over the bowlers. This was his 4th double century in consecutive series’ and in the second played a quickfire knock of 38 from 40 balls to give his team a push as they looked to declare as early as possible.

As skipper, most things he did were spot on, from opting for five bowlers to his bowling changes – backing the pacers to do the job and giving them fields that rewarded their efforts though he still can learn a bit while making decisions for reviews overall a good Test match for the skipper.

Ajinkya Rahane 7/10

His place in the side was the most talked about thing on the morning of the game. Ajinkya Rahane was coming in after an injury break and while he was out Karun Nair walked in and scored a triple hundred. But the team’s policy of backing a regular player over a replacement paid rich dividends as Rahane made useful contributions in both the innings.

He would have wanted to convert that 82 in the first innings into a hundred but none the less was valuable and in the second inning got out for 28 while looking for some quick runs.

Wriddhiman Saha 8/10

He has given the team assurance and confidence they needed to play with five bowlers. Team India under Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble has wanted to attack and to have an aggressive edge in a Test match you need five bowlers. While that means sacrificing on a regular batsman the contribution from Wriddhiman Saha and the lower order has allowed them to go with it.

Saha has always been a brilliant gloveman behind the stumps and the way he has manned the responsibility at No. 6 now that is all the team wanted. He scored a magnificent century in the first innings batting with Ravichandran Ashwin and co. to help the team declare with something as massive as 687.

Ravichandran Ashwin 7.5/10

250 wickets in 45 Test matches is an insane number and Ravi Ashwin has overhauled that with such ease. His glorious run continued in this Test as well as he ended the match with 6 wickets on a surface that didn’t turn was slower and continued to be a good pitch for the batsmen through the 5 days.

He was a bit rusty in the first innings but with the wicket of Mushfiqur Rahim in the first innings he completed 250 wickets and made it 255 by the end of the match. His off-spinners didn’t have a lot of assistance so he opted for a lot of carom balls and one of those also got rid of Rahim. Ashwin also bowled a few leg-breaks in between to mix it up and keep the batsmen on their toes. He also batted well for his 34 in the first innings.

Ravindra Jadeja 8/10

While Ravi Ashwin has taken a lot of highlight for his bowling and Team India’s success – Ravindra Jadeja has been there and done that as well. Developing into a real wicket-taker he comes in and bowls with the new ball as well as the old, at the top order and the tail and gives them absolutely no space to breathe.

He chokes the scoring rate and more often his bowling partners take the fruit for that pressure. But Jadeja with his accuracy and variation in pace, the purchase he generates from the surface and the angles he creates has been a match winner for the team and I am yet to talk about his batting contribution. He scored 60 valuable runs in the first innings and 16 off 10 in the second.

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Ishant Sharma 6/10

Ishant Sharma might have ended with just 3 wickets in the match but he certainly deserved more. The most experienced among Indian pacers he was a bit wayward in the first innings and gave the Bangladeshi openers a lot to pounce upon at the start. But as the Test match progressed he got his act together and in the last afternoon bowled a splendid spell.

The ball missed the outside edge of the bat more often than the batsmen managed to hit it. He dismissed Mahmudullah who was looking dangerous on 64 and caught Sabbir Rahman plumb for 24 to give the team crucial breakthroughs. Ishant missed two wickets he should have ideally bagged as Vijay dropped one in the slips and the umpire didn’t give an lbw decision didn’t go his way.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar 5/10

From being a bowler who was useful just with the new ball that swung to a more mature bowler who has a lot more pace behind his deliveries and manages to reverse swing the ball as well Bhuvneshwar Kumar has evolved his bowling in the last couple of years.

He might have not got rewards in terms of wickets but played his part for the team and should be proud of his effort. Skipper Virat Kohli rightly praised his hard work after the win and said Bhuvi now is a bowler for all conditions.

Umesh Yadav 6/10

While Bangladeshi batsmen were firm at the crease the Vidarbha Express ran in and pushed them out of their course. In the first innings he showed Tamim Iqbal how good a fielder he was when the Bangladeshi opener challenged his throwing arm. The skipper wanted him to exploit reverse swing and thus was not used with the new ball.

He bowled a magnificent spell swung the ball at some rapid pace and made sure Bangladesh’s batting charge met with a befitting reply. Umesh dismissed Soumya Sarkar and Mominul Haque in that spell and later got rid of Taijul Islam. In the second inning he bowled just 12 overs without any success.