Kuldeep Yadav, R Ashwin’s moment after England were bowled out for 218© X (Twitter)
The 5th Test between India and England could be Ravichandran Ashwin’s 100th but it was Kuldeep Yadav who mesmerised everyone with his stunning spell on Day 1 in Dharamsala. Kuldeep bagged a 5-for while the milestone-man Ravichandran Ashwin joined in late with a 4-wicket haul. What impressed everyone was the camaraderie between Ashwin and Kuldeep at the end of the innings after England were bundled out for 218. For a while, it couldn’t be decided if Ashwin will be carrying the ball out as memento or Kuldeep.
In a video that is going viral on social media, Kuldeep could be seen tossing the ball to Ashwin, urging him to carry it out, marking a momentous moment. But, Ashwin tossed the ball back to Kuldeep, asking him to do so as he took 5 wickets in the innings.
The tossing of the ball continued for a while before Kuldeep eventually grabbed the ball in his hand and showed it to the crowd as he headed back to the dressing room. Here’s the video:
R Ashwin Kuldeep Yadav
Follow the match https://t.co/jnMticF6fc #TeamIndia | #INDvENG | @ashwinravi99 | @imkuldeep18 | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/hJyrCS6Hqh
— BCCI (@BCCI) March 7, 2024
Kuldeep (5/72) and Ashwin (4/51) ran through the England batting line-up as the visitors lost eight wickets for 118 runs across post-lunch and post-tea sessions. En route his fifer, Kuldeep became the fastest bowler in India to claim 50 Test wickets, in terms of the number of balls bowled, going past Axar Patel in the process.
Opener Zak Crawley (79, 108 balls) offered lone resistance for England.
There were two partnerships in the middle-order — 37 between Crawley and Joe Root for third wicket and 38 between Root and 100-Test-man Jonny Bairstow for the fourth wicket — but they were not sufficient for the visitors.
There was a point in England innings when they lost five wickets for mere eight runs as Kuldeep, Ashwin, and Ravindra Jadeja got into the act.
WIth PTI inputs
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