Ben Stokes' team set the home team a difficult target of 231 thanks to Ollie Pope's magnificent 196 and important contributions from Rehan Ahmed and debutant Tom Hartley (adding 62 runs apiece). But after playing aggressively in the first innings, India's batting lineup unexpectedly played defensively in the second, going all out for 202 runs in 69.2 overs. In contrast to India's previous innings, where the batsmen engaged the English attack head-on, this unexpected collapse occurred. In the fourth day, England had the advantage due to the slow pitch and the pressure of the chase. With five wickets in his debut, eventually finishing with figures of 7/62, debutant Tom Hartley dazzled, while Joe Root and Jack Leach each claimed a wicket as the English team began the 2024 Test tour with a victory evocative of 2020–21.
|