On the first day of the second Test between India and England in Vizag, the standout performance came from the Indian batters, with Yashasvi Jaiswal stealing the spotlight by scoring an impressive 179* runs, contributing to India’s total of 336/6. Despite this, former England cricketer Michael Atherton remains unfazed, expressing confidence in England’s ability to counter with aggressive batting in the second innings.
Atherton emphasized that England could draw inspiration from Ollie Pope’s notable 196-run innings in the previous Test. He suggested that India’s target of 400-450 runs in the first innings might provide an opportunity for England to exploit the conditions and dismiss them early. Atherton noted that if the Vizag pitch breaks up, it is likely to happen later in the game, potentially benefiting England during their batting innings.
Atherton said: “While Jaiswal’s there, India will have designs on a score of 400, 450. That’s never a bad first-innings score, but it’s not the kind of one that will frighten England. You always look at conditions and wonder how things will go. It’s certainly less of a troubling pitch than it was in Hyderabad in that first innings.
England’s batters, having taken confidence from the way Ollie Pope and the others played (in the first Test), will be pretty confident of getting a score themselves. You’ll see England playing aggressively because that’s they’re committed to playing that way and quite differently from the way India play. It’s a good contrast in styles really between India’s top six and England’s.”
Anticipating a strategic approach, Atherton expects Ben Stokes-led England to leverage the potential break-up of the pitch, countering India with their aggressive batting. Meanwhile, India’s focus revolves around a sustained partnership between Jaiswal and Ravichandran Ashwin, aiming to prolong their innings, especially as the pitch is expected to become more challenging from the third day onwards.
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