
India are on top of England on Day 1 of the fifth and final Test in Dharamsala on Thursday (March 7). Opting to bat first, Ben Stokes-led England only managed 218 in 57.4 overs with Kuldeep Yadav taking 5 for 72. From England, opener Zak Crawley top-scored with a fine 79 but was dismissed by Kuldeep by a peach of a delivery. The wrist-spinner bowled a full-length delivery, prompting Crawley to go for a drive. The Englishman had a huge gap between bat and pad and missed the length completely to see his stumps get rattled.
Here is the video of Crawley's dismissal:
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Kuldeep was on a roll with the red cherry as he went onto remove the likes of Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Jonny Bairstow and captain Stokes to claim his fourth five-fer in the format. As a result, India dismissed England for a below-par 218 when they were well-placed at 100 for 2 at the lunch break. From 137 for 2, the visitorswere soon reduced to 183-8 with R Ashwin, playing his 100th Test, also joining the party and ending with a four-fer.
India have got a flying start, thanks to openers Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal. They will now look to take a huge lead in the series finale. Rohit-led India already have an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five Tests and are aiming to end with a 4-1 scoreline.