India fast bowler Akash Deep is being slammed for making unnecessary physical contact with England opener Ben Duckett on Day 2 of the fifth Test at the Oval. The India bowler gave a send-off to the England opener after dismissing him on the stroke of lunch.
After India got bowled out for 224 in the first innings, Duckett and Zak Crawley got their team off to a terrific start, adding 92 runs for the first wicket off 77 balls. With India in desperate need of a wicket, Akash Deep rose to the occasion and found the outside edge of Ben Duckett’s bat as he tried to play a reverse scoop against the India seamer.
ENG vs IND 5th Test Day 2 Updates
The edge safely carried into Dhruv Jurel’s gloves as the entire team rejoiced to celebrate the first wicket of the innings. As Duckett was making his way back to the pavilion, Akash put an arm around him and said a few words to give him a send-off. However, Akash’s unnecessary physical contact with the batter didn’t go down well with many, as fans slammed him for his act.
Duckett and Crawley whacked the Indian bowlers all around the park with their extravagant shots to put India under pressure. The duo used their feet, charged down the track and scored at a run rate of over 6, leaving Indian bowlers befuddled.
Courtesy of their partnership, England went into lunch on 109/1 in 16 overs with Crawley (52*) and Ollie Pope (12*) at the crease. Earlier, India resumed their first innings on 204/6 with Karun Nair (52*) and Washington Sundar (19*) at the crease. However, the visitors couldn’t add much to their overnight score as Josh Tongue (3/57) and Gus Atkinson (5/33) ran through their batting and bundled them out for 224.
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