Former India player Varun Aaron believes India sit in a comfortable position at the end of Day 2 of the 5th Test against England.
The Indian team has found themselves with a lead of 52 runs at the end of the day’s play on Friday.
They ended at 75 for 2 with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Akash Deep at the crease, with the latter coming on as a night watchman.
After India got bundled out for 224, the bowling unit did a tremendous job to restrict the hosts for just 247 runs in their 1st innings, thus conceding a paltry lead of 23 runs.
Speaking on ‘Match Centre Live’ after the conclusion of Day 2 of the fifth Test, JioHotstar expert Varun Aaron gave his verdict.
“I think India are in a good position. The wicket of Sai Sudharsan could have been avoided, but it was a great delivery – there wasn’t much he could have done. For me, the story of the day was the bowling spells from Siraj and Prasidh Krishna. They bowled with real heart. Even Akash Deep did a solid holding job,” Aaron said.
Jaiswal rallied back to form after a few underwhelming knocks. The southpaw has so far batted brilliantly and remains unbeaten on 51 runs, and Aaron believes his aggressive batting was the need of the hour for the visitors.
“Jaiswal’s innings looked risky at times and he had a few chances, but his aggressive intent was important. We’ve seen India struggle with run rate in this series – so someone needed to keep the scoreboard ticking. India now find themselves 50 runs ahead, which is a good position,” he added.
The former India pacer believes a lead of around 300 runs will be excellent for India, and reiterates the importance of Shubman Gill, who is yet to bat in the second innings
“I don’t think Gill will be taking any risky singles – that’s for sure. But I hope he plays just like he has throughout this series. If he gets a big one tomorrow, India can push for a lead of over 300 – and that would really tilt the game. The key will be how Gill bats – and I think he knows his role is central to India’s plans,” he concluded.