India skittles England for 120, wins 2nd test at Lord’s

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LONDON (AP) – Roaring in celebration, Mohammed Siraj removed the off stump he had just clattered and wheeled around the outfield in delight at the home of Cricket. Virat Kohli, the winning captain, was just as animated as he punched the air and pumped his fists amid his victory dance. A fired-up India team sure enjoyed this rare win at Lord’s. On a dramatic and highly charged Day 5 marked by numerous verbal clashes between players, the Indians skittled out England for 120 in less than two sessions to win the second test by 151 runs on Monday and take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.

“The tension on the field really helped us,” Kohli said with a smile. Indeed, it could easily have been a test match in Mumbai the way the Indian supporters in a crowd of nearly 26,000 pushed their team during another collapse by England, prompted by a historic failure of the top order. Set 272 to win in 60 overs after a declaration by India on 298-8 just after lunch, England never intended to chase that victory target but performed hopelessly in defending it. Both openers, Rory Burns and Dom Sibley, were out for 0 – the first time that has happened to England at home in 143 years of test Cricket – while Jonny Bairstow and captain Joe Root, the prized wicket, fell in the overs either side of tea. Sam Curran then suffered the embarrassment of becoming the first player to succumb to a king pair – two golden ducks – in the same test match at Lord’s. Jos Buttler curbed his natural attacking instincts to lead a rearguard effort with a 96-ball 25, helped by a stubborn 35-ball knock by Ollie Robinson.

The pair was together for 12 overs and England just had to survive another the final 10 overs, but Robinson’s dismissal – he was trapped lbw by a clever slower ball by Jasprit Bumrah – was the beginning of the end. In the next over, Siraj enticed a nick behind from Buttler to end his 2 1/2-hour vigil and Jimmy Anderson was the last man out, clean-bowled three balls later as Siraj recorded figures of 4-32. England had been knocked over inside 52 overs and, after staving off what looked to be a likely defeat after a half-hour of play in a fractious morning session, India celebrated just a third test win at the home of Cricket. “When we got on top, the crowd got behind us and we were happy with the support. We fed off that energy,” Kohli said. “It’s a day-late celebration for Independence Day. It’s the best feeling we can give the Indians here and back in India.” Earlier, Mohammed Shami and Bumrah put on an unbeaten 89 runs for the ninth wicket to frustrate England, which had reduced India to 209-8 and would have been hoping to be chasing less than 200 to win. Resuming on 181-6, India had Rishabh Pant (22) and Ishant Sharma (16) dismissed by Robinson and that brought Bumrah to the middle alongside Shami. Their aggressive, flamboyant shot-making took the game away from England, whose tactics and field-placing became questionable as its discipline turned ragged.

“A lot falls on my shoulders in that respect,” Root said. “The game could have looked very different at lunchtime if I had managed things slightly different and I will learn from that experience and make sure that in similar scenarios I deal with it better.” Verbal clashes between Bumrah and some England players – notably Mark Wood, who attempted to rough up his fellow paceman, and wicketkeeper Jos Buttler – added spice to the occasion and fired up Kohli watching from the pavilion balcony. England lost its way when Bumrah arrived, targeting him with rough stuff apparently in response to Bumrah’s aggressive attitude to Anderson on Saturday evening. Bumrah required two mandatory concussion tests after being hit on the helmet twice. Shami brought up just his second half-century in 53 tests with a four and a huge six in successive balls before lunch, and he was 56 not out when Kohli declared soon after the players came out for the second session. Bumrah was unbeaten on 34. Neither player had passed 10 previously in this series, and they were applauded back into the pavilion by the India team. “We know how priceless those runs are and it proved the case today,” Kohli said. The first test was drawn at Trent Bridge. The third match of the series starts Aug. 25 in Leeds.

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