India haven’t gotten rid of Bazball: Former Indian stumper cautions Rohit Sharma & Co. despite Vizag win

India beat England by 106 runs on Day 4 of the second Test in Visakhapatnam on Monday (Feb 5). Opting to bat first, India rode on Yashasvi Jaiswal's double century (209) but only managed 396 overall in the first innings. In reply, England got dismissed for 253 to handover a vital 143-run lead as Shubman Gill's 104 and Axar Patel's 45 enabled India to set a challenging 399-run target.

England started Day 4 resuming at 67 for 1 and were going for the run-chase, backing their much-talked about and successful Bazball approach. However, they fell for 292 to lose by 106 runs as the series is now levelled at 1-1. With three more Tests to go in the five-match series, former Indian stumper-turned-commentator Parthiv Patel has warned Rohit Sharma & Co. 

Speaking on Colors Cineplex, Parthiv said, "We definitely cannot say that we have gotten rid of Bazball because when India had set a nearly 400-run target in the fourth innings, we were still thinking that they might be able to chase it."

"332 runs were required on the fourth morning and yet it seemed like that. 106 runs were left when they got all out. If Joe Root hadn't played that shot and Ben Stokes hadn't gone for a walk in the park, if that run-out dismissal hadn't happened, it might have been difficult," he added.

In England's final innings, Zak Crawley top scored with a fine 73 whereas many others got starts but failed to convert them into big scores. Had anyone else stuck around for a bit more, the chase could have gone in England's favour. From India's perspective, despite tons from Jaiswal and Gill, it was vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah's match figures of 9 for 91 which propelled India to a much-needed win.

The series is now interestingly poised at 1-1 with the third Test to kick off on Feb 15 in Rajkot.