India v England Fifth Test Report Card, Day Two

Featuring bows, scripts and the Sarfaraz Supporters Squad

Bows
Grade: B-

I spent most of the first session of this second day of the fifth India-England Test watching the last session of the first day of the second New Zealand-Australia Test.

It had been a fascinating day’s play in Christchurch, with fourteen wickets falling. But now it was time to take a giant sip of water, switch to the India-England Test and see how many wickets England had taken.

Of course, they’d taken none (0). Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma had cruised through the first session, taking the score to 264/1, a lead of 46, with nine wickets in hand.

Both batters had also brought up their centuries in the process. Gill’s century was reached with a slog-swept four, and he celebrated by doffing his cap and bowing to the crowd.

Should more batters bow when reaching milestones? Answer: yes, obviously.

But not just bowing. Maybe a curtsy for an all-run four. Blown kisses for a successfully overturned LBW. A backflip for sneaking an extra run off a deflected throw at the stumps. You get the idea.