Former Indian batsman Wasim Jaffer has been closely following the development of the Lord’s Test between England and India. Team India finished day four on 181/6 with a lead of 154 on the board. The final day’s play is thus well poised with all three results possible. Spin played an important role in the day’s proceedings on the fourth day. Moeen Ali and Joe Root bowled well in tandem in the final session of the day’s play with Moeen also picking up two crucial wickets.
Meanwhile, Wasim Jaffer posted a cryptic tweet after the fourth day’s play at Lord’s hinting that spin will decide the fate of the Test match on day five. In the process, he also said that India will be missing Ravichandran Ashwin on the final day. India only have Ravindra Jadeja in the playing XI while they opted to drop Ravichandran Ashwin from the line-up. It will be interesting to see how much of an assistance does Jadeja gets from the fifth day pitch at Lord’s. India can also try Rohit Sharma if need be.
Wasim Jaffer On Ravichandran Ashwin’s Absence From Lord’s Test
“Let me tell you a kutti story.. The main character is missing.. #ENGvIND” Jaffer captioned his tweet and hinted at Ashwin’s absence from the playing XI. The Indian off-spinner does not have a good record in SENA countries, but Jaffer said that he would have been a difficult proposition in this pitch. Jaffer also shared pictures of two balls bouncing up with a puff of dust to illustrate his tweet.
Let me tell you a kutti story.. The main character is missing.. #ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/fSmNYih6Cx
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) August 15, 2021
Though he tried to play with his tweet, the Indian fans quickly solved the puzzle. Ashwin also ended up as the highest wicket-taker in the first edition of the ICC World Test Championship with 71 scalps. With Ashwin playing just Test cricket these days, his omission from India’s playing XI did raise some questions regarding the team management’s decision and thought behind benching the veteran spinner.
The credit of India’s 154-run lead goes to Rahane and Pujara’s 100-run stand which took India to 181/6 after the fourth day’s play. The day ended with a bit of drama with bad light forcing the umpires to call the day off.
Also Read: ENG vs IND 2021: Shane Warne Weighs In On Lord’s Test Result