India v England, 2nd Test - England player ratings

England suffered a 246-run loss at the hands of the Indians at the ADA VCA Stadium at Vizag. While the loss itself is a terrible one to digest as well as deal with in terms of the loss, this also happens to be England’s second largest loss against India and history would also go on to record that it was at the time of Alastair Cook’s captaincy, a rare blemish on the Englishman’s impeccable record as both a batsman and a leader.

While the Britons lost the match by quite a considerable margin, it was clear that each time there were a few lone crusaders who made amends with either bat or ball. Stuart Broad’s spell was something as impressive as they come while the fact of the matter remained that Alastair Cook, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow were perhaps the few players who were able to make amends with the bat. In a bid to see some of the individual performances, it seems quite clear that we would need to take a look at the player ratings.

Alastair Cook – 6.5/10

The England skipper was one of the lone crusaders with the bat as he did battle with the Indian bowlers for the most part. In spite of a horror show in the first innings, Cook managed to pick up the pieces in the second innings with a wonderfully compiled 54. Moreover, the way he batted against the Indian spinners and kept them at bay was something fantastic. Also, the mantle of captaincy was also there for all to see as he managed to lead his bowlers to pick 20 wickets in the match.

Haseeb Hameed – 5.5/10

The 19-year old did not quite have the best of times with the bat, especially with the Indian spin trio collecting as many scalps as they did along the way. While the first innings was a terrible failure, to say the least, Hameed made his opportunity count in the second innings with some terrific batting. Of course, he did not have the runs to supplement the same, but the fact of the matter remained that he batted in excess of 100 deliveries before conceding his wicket.

Also read – 13 Facts about Haseeb Hameed: The teenage batting sensation

Joe Root – 6.5/10

One of England’s most exciting cricketers in recent times, Joe Root is an impressive proposition to deal with. A half-century in the first innings saw him frustrate the Indian spinners as he was seemingly solid in defense. However, the second innings saw a radically different Joe Root take the stage, one intent on helping the Britons save the match. Needless to say, a strong performance from Root.

Ben Duckett – 3/10

What has followed a dream debut for Ben Duckett in ODIs has become a seemingly nightmarish time with the bat in the southpaw’s debut tour of the subcontinent. The southpaw managed just 5 runs in the match all of which came in the first innings. Whether he keeps his place in the next match remains to be seen.

Moeen Ali – 4.5/10

The England all-rounder did not have the impact he would have liked in the match especially given the fact that the Indian spinners were able to extract the amount of spin from the surface as they did. Moeen Ali managed just the three runs and the four wickets, three of which came in that fiery spell in the first innings.

Also read – 15 Facts about Moeen Ali: The Beard to be Feared

Ben Stokes – 7.5/10

The England all-rounder has been compared time and again to former all-rounder Andre Flintoff. Although the latter bowled much more than Stokes does, the southpaw was impressive in the first innings with an impressive 70, an innings that took time and effort to compile. However, consistency has been one of the biggest issues for Stokes in recent times as he failed to score runs in the second innings.

Jonny Bairstow – 7/10

England’s best player in the year was also England’s best player in the match for to a certain extent. However, the fact of the matter remained that he could not single-handedly make it count as far as the batting concerned. With 53 in the first innings, Bairstow managed 34 in the second and was also unbeaten. As far as glove work, Bairstow went on to impress with a lot of improvement.

Also Watch: Jonny Bairstow hobbles back to the dressing room due to an ankle niggle

Adil Rashid – 6/10

The leg-spinner once again was pivotal when it came to troubling the Indian batsmen with some decent bowling. However, what was more impressive was the fact that Adil Rashid impressed with the bat in the first innings when he remained unbeaten on 32. Although he was dismissed to a poor shot from the bowling of Mohammed Shami in the second innings, it was a strong performance nonetheless.

Zafar Ansari – 3.5/10

In spite of a weak performance at Rajkot, the England management decided to stick with Zafar Ansari for the second Test as well. However, little did they know that the left-arm spinner would be rather overwhelmed by the Indians on the day. Ansari went wicketless in the first innings and did not bowl in the second innings as well, thus capping off a weak performance.

Stuart Broad – 6.5/10

Kapil Dev was almost moved to tears when he watched Stuart Broad simply decimate the Indian batting with some tremendous bowling. The spell saw Broad claim four extremely important Indian wickets something that saw the likes of KL Rahul, M Vijay, and Ajinkya Rahane lose their wickets. Needless to say, he was the best bowler on the day.

Also read – England pacer Stuart Broad unlikely to play in the third Test

James Anderson – 6/10

After missing out in the first Test match at Rajkot, James Anderson was the only replacement in the side as he came in for Chris Woakes. Apart from the terrific swinging abilities, Anderson was able to impress with four wickets in the match, three of which came in the first innings.