India clinched a commanding 336-run victory in the second Test on Sunday, bowling out England for 271 in their second innings to level the five-match series 1-1. The triumph marked India’s first-ever Test win at Edgbaston.Starting the final day at 72 for 3, England crumbled under sustained pressure from the Indian bowlers and slipped to 153 for 6 by lunch. The hosts were eventually bundled out in the second session, falling well short of the daunting 608-run target and never seriously challenging India’s dominance.
Pacer Akash Deep (6/99) picked his maiden five-for in Tests. He rocked England early striking twice in a rain-delayed morning session. He returned after lunch to deliver the decisive blow, dismissing Jamie Smith (88), who was the only England batter to show fight in an otherwise underwhelming batting performance by the hosts.
He then took the final wicket of Brydon Carse (38). The third Test begins in London on July 10.
On a typical English weather day when heavy cloud cover and subsequent rain made way for bright sunshine, the start was delayed by one hour and 40 minutes. The forced stoppage left India 80 overs to bowl out England, who began the day at 72 for three chasing a near impossible 608.Prasidh Krishna opened the bowling alongside Akash Deep, who was the stand out bowler of the session. For the first time in the high-scoring game, the wicket appeared to have deteriorated a bit with Akash Deep getting a prodigious amount of seam movement. It was a tad surprising that Mohammed Siraj did not start alongside Akash Deep.Having said that, Akash Deep needed seven balls to provide the breakthrough in the opening hour as Ollie Pope played one on to his stumps. In the following over from Akash Deep, the dangerous Harry Brook was trapped in front with a delivery that hit the crack and seamed back in sharply. Brook could not do much about that.It can be assumed that the medium pacer has sealed his place for the Lord’s Test with a stellar use of the new ball at Edgbaston. Krishna from the other end could not strike but performed the holding role effectively. Ravindra Jadeja was brought in after the first hour of and he got the ball to turn from the rough instantly, posing problems for Ben Stokes and Jamie Smith. Unlike Headingley, Jadeja tried to take some pace off his deliveries and it did turn off the rough.The England captain however was able to get some much needed runs. He got four boundaries off Siraj including from a pull and extra cover drive off Siraj. Realising that there was little point in just defending, Stokes decided to sweep Jadeja. Going into day five, either an India win or draw were probable results with England effectively conceding that there were not going to go for the mammoth target despite only drawing one game in the last three years.(With PTI Inputs)First Published: Jul 6, 2025 10:24 PM IST
