Virat Kohli could have been excused for sporting a grin that would have turned a Cheshire cat green with envy when Joe Root called wrong at the coin-toss. The skipper knew his side had won the battle of the uncontrollable; if his delight was well concealed, it was also because he understood the actual battle still lay ahead.
By evening, despite an unproductive personal batting stint, the Indian captain should have allowed himself a tiny smile. His team, 0-1 down to England, had taken a giant stride towards restoring parity on day one of the second Test on Saturday, his white-ball deputy leading the way.
Rohit Sharma in full cry is a sight for the Gods. Welcoming the opportunity to showcase his skills in front of nearly 12,000 appreciative fans, Rohit played with subliminal felicity to hold the innings together at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. On a surface which showed worrying signs of wear as early as the first session, he was largely untroubled while bringing up a seventh Test century, his iridescent 161 the bedrock around which India constructed an impressive 300 for six.
The standout Rohit wasn’t England’s only tormentor. Ajinkya Rahane, desperate for runs after hitting a trough following his series-turning century at the MCG in December, kept his fellow Mumbaikar admirable company during a roaring fourth-wicket association of 162. Rishabh Pant provided another illustration of growing maturity and situational awareness to stymie English designs of a fightback once they dismissed Rohit and Rahane in the space of 15 deliveries with a measured unbeaten 33, which he will hope to translate into something more substantial in the bowlers’ company.
When Rohit is purring like he did for nearly six and a half hours on Saturday, he can make batting look the most natural exercise. There were glorious drives through the covers and down the ground with nary an effort, but it was hard to ignore the profusion of sweeps that dotted the landscape. England had driven India ragged by employing the traditional and unconventional versions of that stroke in the first Test. Rohit paid them back in the same coin, though not for him the funky reverse that the opposition so relishes.
India suffered a ninth-ball jolt when Shubman Gill departed without a run on the board, offering no stroke to Olly Stone. Cheteshwar Pujara was the first to enjoy Rohit’s pyrotechnics from the best seat in the ground while Jack Leach and Moeen Ali failed to cash in on the generous assistance the dry surface offered. The lack of abrasiveness precluded reverse for the quicks, of whom Stone was excellent with sustained hostility at considerable pace.
Pujara played the ideal foil during a second-wicket alliance of 85, terminated by Leach who extracted sharp turn to elicit a catch low at slip. Kohli strode out to a vocal reception but slinked back five minutes later, his booming cover-drive against the big turn of Moeen a poor riposte that early in his innings when still on nought.
England’s spinners their tails up; maybe that made them too overeager, for they served up a steady diet of loose offerings. Rohit teed off with inimitable nonchalance while Rahane held his own with a classy 67 until both fell on the sweep. The end might have been undesirable, but the means well justified.
India, who got their wish of a reasonably quick turner from the off, rested Jasprit Bumrah. It’s unlikely they will rue that call; all things being equal, the onus from here on should largely be on the spin trio of R Ashwin, the recalled Kuldeep Yadav and debutant Axar Patel.
Score:
India 1st innings: 300 for 6 in 88 overs (Rohit Sharma 161, Ajinkya Rahane 67; Jack Leach 2/78, Moeen Ali 2/112.
(R Kaushik is a Bengaluru based senior cricket journalist)