Subscribe
Follow Us
Former India opener Virender Sehwag trolled Virat Kohli after his move to sledge England batter Jonny Bairstow backfired. England were staring down the barrel at the end of Day 2 as the Indian fast bowlers reduced the hosts to 84/5, including the big wicket of in-form Joe Root. The Indians continued to pile on the pressure at the start of Day 3 but Virat Kohli's heated exchange with Jonny Bairstow stirred the England wicketkeeper batter as he went on to complete his third successive hundred off only 119 balls.
Virender Sehwag claimed on social media that before Virat Kohli's war of words with Jonny Bairstow, the England batter was batting like Cheteshwar Pujara but the former India captain's sledging ignited the spark in him, and he began dominating the bowlers as Rishabh Pant did on Day 1, who smashed a whirlwind 146 off 111-balls.
“Jonny Bairstow's Strike Rate before Kohli's Sledging – 21. Post Sledging – 150. Pujara ki tarah khel rahe thhey, Kohli ne Pant banwa diya bewajah sledge karke (He was playing like Pujara, Kohli turned him into Pant after sledging him),” Virender Sehwag tweeted.
Jonny Bairstow's Strike Rate before Kohli's Sledging -: 21
Post Sledging – 150Pujara ki tarah khel rahe thhey, Kohli ne Pant banwa diya bewajah sledge karke #IndvsEng
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) July 3, 2022
Don’t poke the Bear that is Johnny Bairstow again please……..
— Ian Raphael Bishop (@irbishi) July 3, 2022
Before Virat Kohli walked up to him, Jonny Bairstow had made just 13 off 61 deliveries.
But after Virat Kohli's provocation, his next 87 runs came off just 57 balls.
The Englishman went into overdrive – while he was earlier mistiming his strokes, Virat Kohli’s words fired him up.
Suddenly, Jonny Bairstow started gaining in confidence before unleashing his full repertoire of strokes – short-arm pulls, drives, lofted hits over the inner circle and the runs started to come at a rapid pace.
The England star who was the main hero of England’s 3-0 whitewash of New Zealand before this Test match looked menacing, especially after bringing up his fifty in the first session of play.
Notably, it took him 20 minutes to score his first run on Day 3. But an altercation with Virat Kohli was what he needed to get going.
Runs kept flowing from his bat in the second session as well as Jonny Bairstow coasted through to his third century in as many Tests before being sent back to the pavilion by Mohammed Shami for 106.
Virat Kohli was back in the thick of things because it was he who took Jonny Bairstow's catch in the slips to provide India with the much-needed breakthrough. Virat Kohli was seen blowing kisses after the England batter's departure.
Jonny Bairstow brought up his ton in 119 balls, which featured 14 fours and two huge sixes. It was the 32-year-old's fifth hundred of the year.
Jonny Bairstow's knock earned rich plaudits from ex-cricketers, including West Indies icon Ion Bishop who commented that Virat Kohli awakened the “bear” in him.
His wicket brought more rewards for the Indian bowlers as the visitors got rid of Stuart Broad and Sam Billings in quick succession before bowling England out for 284.
Article Continues Below
Though India took a healthy 136-run lead in the first innings, England would still be happy with their recovery, considering Ben Stokes' men were 84/5 on Saturday and had even lost the wicket of their most prolific scorer Joe Root.
In the second essay, India lost opener Shubhman Gill in the opening over before Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli resurrected their innings. While Cheteshwar Pujara was still batting on 32, Virat Kohli lost his wicket to Ben Stokes after making 20.
On Day 2, it was the combo of Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah who had put India in command with their heroics.
While Ravindra Jadeja struck his third Test hundred and his first on English soil, it was a day to remember for Jasprit Bumrah as he shined with both bat and ball at Edgbaston.
On Saturday, stand-in India captain Jasprit Bumrah broke Brian Lara’s long-standing record for hitting the most runs in an over in the history of Test cricket.
19 years ago in December 2003, Brian Lara plundered 28 runs off South African left-arm tweaker Robin Peterson in a Test match against the Proteas at the Wanderers in Johannesburg.
The world record remained with Brian Lara for nearly two decades before being dismantled by Jasprit Bumrah in Birmingham.
The 28-year-old Indian cricketer destroyed Stuart Broad as the England pacer went on to concede 35-runs in an over.
While 29 of those runs came from Jasprit Bumrah’s bat, the remaining ones came through extras.
Jasprit Bumrah wasn't done for the day as after his world record-breaking performance with the bat, he led from the front with the ball too.
Jasprit Bumrah sent both England openers Alex Lees, Zak Crawley, and No.3 Ollie Pope back into the hut to make it Team India's day.
