Published 16:38 IST, February 13th 2021
Michael Vaughan backs England to win at Chepauk despite losing toss on a raging turner
Michael Vaughan has said that it will be a 'remarkable victory' for England if they manage to win the ongoing second Test against India despite losing the toss
As the Chepauk pitch continues to provide assistance to the spinners on the very first day of the second Test between India and England at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, former English skipper Michael Vaughan has gone on to say that it will be a remarkable victory for the visitors should they succeed in winning this contest.
On Saturday morning, Indian skipper Virat Kohli won a crucial toss and quickly decided to bat first on a wicket that is expected to deteriorate as the contest progresses.
'It will be a remarkable Victory': Michael Vaughan
Taking to the micro-blogging site, Vaughan termed the Chepauk wicket as a 'beach' and then wrote that if Joe Root & Co. win this week having despite having lost the toss then, it will be a remarkable victory for England.
England's splendid run in the subcontinent
A spirited English team comes into the contest on the back of an outstanding 227-run win over India at the same venue four days ago but the only difference is that the visitors had batted first on that occasion. By the virtue of that mammoth win in the previous Test, this was England's sixth consecutive win in a row in Asia. In fact, prior to this series, the Joe Root-led side had whitewashed Sri Lanka in their own backyard by a 2-0 margin.
That series win against the Lankans was registered on spin-friendly wickets and that is what must have prompted Vaughan to be confident of the English team pulling off something extraordinary on this raging turner.
Rohit Sharma scores a vital century
Opening the innings with Shubman Gill, Rohit had to be cautious after the hosts lost the wickets of both Gill as well as skipper Virat Kohli early on and once he got set, the 'Hitman' played his natural game as the English bowlers were taken to the cleaners. He thereby brought up his well-deserved century on a difficult surface and continued to go for big shots.
Sharma was eventually dismissed by left-arm spinner Jack Leach for 161 in the quest of scoring quick runs. India have now surpassed the 250 run-mark as the scorecard reads 257/5 after having lost Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane for 67 who was clean bowled by offie Moeen Ali while attempting a sweep shot.
Updated 16:38 IST, February 13th 2021