ENG v IND 2018: Team India players’ rating for the Test series

Team India lost the five-match Test series 1-4 to England.

The England and India Test series had some nail-biting matches which went right down to the wire. The Indian team lost the five-match series 1-4 despite being ahead in two of the Tests at Edgbaston and Southampton, but let the matches slip out of the hands and were left to rue the missed chances.

India was comprehensively beaten in the Lord’s Test and the last Test at the Oval was a dead rubber, but the team showed fight in the Oval Test via KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant. However, at Lord’s, bizarre team selection led to the total decimation of the team.

The Indian batting came to its own later in the series, however, by then the series was gone for India and they were left to lick their wounds. The Indian bowling, on the other hand, especially the fast bowlers bowled extremely well. This despite missing their best weapon in English conditions, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Team COC presents the ratings for the Indian team for the five-match England Test series.

Check out Team India players’ rating for the Test series

SHIKHAR DHAWAN- 1/10
Shikhar Dhawan had a torrid time in England with 162 runs in 8 innings at an average of 20.23 and the highest score of 44. Dhawan was exposed early on in the series in Lord’s and England bowlers just kept on getting him caught in slips or being LBW.

Dhawan’s lack of feet movement against the swinging and seaming deliveries cost him dearly and solidified the notion of him being only good in subcontinent conditions and his record also states that he struggles a lot in overseas conditions in South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and England. In the 2014 series too he was dropped after a couple of games.

For his inability to give India strong starts and failing to rectify his shortcomings, Dhawan gets just 1 point out of 10.

MURALI VIJAY- 0/10
Murali Vijay’s fall from grace was the most heartbreaking as he was the highest run-getter for India in the 2014 Test series in England. Vijay’s 2018 began with the struggle in Test series against South Africa. He was figured out by the South African pace battery and barely managed to score runs against them.

However, a century against Afghanistan at home gave the selectors hope that he will regain his form in England, a favored hunting ground for him. However, things went horribly wrong for him as he notched 20,6,0 and 0 in the two Tests he played. The heartbreaking thing was Vijay, who is known for his impeccable judgment of leaving the balls, had somehow forgotten to do so and was getting out bowled or LBW.

M Vijay himself admitted that the England bowlers had his number from the start and his twin ducks in the Lord’s Test probably finished it for Vijay, as one of the best openers for India over the past few years was reduced to a shadow of his past self and now questions have arisen over his future as an Indian player, given that he is 34 years old.

KL RAHUL- 3/10
KL Rahul got the backing of the Indian team management and played all the five Tests in the series, despite being similar to Dhawan in performances. 4,13,8,10,23,36,19,0,37 and 149 were his scores in the 10 innings where he scored a total of 299 runs at an average of 29.90.

This average and series runs are bolstered by a fighting 149 in the last innings of the fifth Test, in which he showed his true capability, but it came a little too late. Rahul was also found wanting under seaming and swinging conditions as his technical flaws were highlighted by the Anderson-Broad duo.

A highlight was his catching in slips, where he pounced 14 catches, inclucing 7 in one match.

He kind of redeemed himself in the last Test, but that came when the series was lost and it only showed that he played to cement his place for the upcoming tour to Australia.

CHETESHWAR PUJARA- 5/10
Another stalwart of the Indian batting lineup Cheteshwar Pujara was found wanting in his technique and confidence in England.  He scored 278 runs in four Tests with a best of 132*. But the remains of the aftermath of South Africa tour was evident on him, as he went into a shell in almost all of his innings and then got out when it seems he would help India post a big total or help chase the total.

Apart from a 72 in Nottingham and 132* in Southampton, Pujara found playing the swinging and seaming conditions too hard to negotiate. Despite the fact that he had an extended county run with Yorkshire, Pujara was uncomfortable when it came to facing the likes of Stokes, Anderson, Broad, and Curran.

However, the most surprising and sad thing was the Pujara, who is known for his amazing defense and tight technique was found flawed in his execution. His defenses were breached way too often, as he was out LBW or bowled too many times for the liking of a player of his caliber. Pujara was found short on confidence also after his disastrous SA tour and it showed in his way of play in England.

VIRAT KOHLI- 7/10
Indian captain Virat Kohli scored 593 runs with two centuries in the Test at an average of 59.30 with two centuries and three fifties. He negotiated the swing and movement well and came out on top in the battle with England’s ace bowler James Anderson.

However, his captaincy was found wanting many times including the bizarre decision to play two spinners under the cloudy and fast bowling helping conditions in Lord’s. Plus the way he let the England tail-enders get away with the game in three of the Tests, was the difference between Indian wins and losses in the series. His inability to deal with the tailenders cost games at Southampton and Edgbaston.

Plus his bullish statements before and after the games in terms of practice games and other things basically took the sheen off his performances. It was a personal victory for Kohli the batsman, but a failure for Kohli the captain.

AJINKYA RAHANE- 4/10

Ajinkya Rahane was the hero of India’s Lord’s win with the bat in 2014 series and it was anticipated that Rahane will be the best bet for India to do well in the series. However, Rahane’s performance was barely noticed, apart from one game where he and Kohli joined forces for a big partnership.

257 runs in 5 Tests with an average of 25.70 and just two fifties don’t do justice to Rahane’s talent and caliber. His highest score of 81 came in the win at Nottingham Test. Rahane’s failures were more highlighted as India failed to chase down totals in Edgbaston and Southampton, where he scored 51 runs, but couldn’t take India to the win.  

HARDIK PANDYA- 4/10
Hardik Pandya scored 164 runs in 4 Tests he played with a best of 52* and took 10 wickets with a best of 5/28. Apart from these performances, his big contribution was in the Nottingham Test win where he picked his career-best five-wicket haul and scored a fifty.

But experts couldn’t find anything special with Pandya, who apart from that failed mostly to make any significant impact in the series. Much was expected from him in the series, but apart from bits and pieces performances, Pandya couldn’t contribute more to the team.

DINESH KARTHIK- 0/10
Dinesh Karthik was given an opportunity of a lifetime in absence of no.1 choice wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha, who was ruled out for a long time due to injury. Karthik was included in the Test series ahead of Parthiv Patel, who had kept wickets in South Africa but didn’t do well both behind and in front of stumps.

Karthik had a very good limited overs experience behind him in recent times, including the match-winning cameo in the Nidahas Trophy final in Sri Lanka.

Karthik, unfortunately, found the England bowlers too hard to handle in front of the stumps. He scored 26 runs in four innings, including two ducks to his name. Behind the stumps too, the late movement of the ball after passing the batsmen troubled him to no end and he dropped a couple of important chances.

His attempt at flamboyance behind the stumps resulted in byes and overall, the expectations from him were not met and team management brought in Rishabh Pant for the third Test. This can truly be a chance that Karthik will regret as a decent enough performance would have helped him cement his place for Australia tour as well. 

RISHABH PANT- 3/10
Rishabh Pant was asked to stay back for the last three Tests of the series as Dinesh Karthik’s performance both in front and in back of the stumps wasn’t satisfactory and Pant got his debut in Nottingham.

Pant started bravely with a second ball six being his first scoring shot in Test cricket. However, failures in Southampton meant that he was criticized a bit. Behind the stumps, he created a record with seven catches in his first Test. But the keeping technique was flawed and it resulted in a lot of byes during the last two Tests.

However, overall for a 20-year-old, Pant kept very well to the moving ball and his biggest moment came when he became the first Indian wicketkeeper to score a hundred in England and in the fourth innings of a Test match. His 114 in the chase of 464 runs was amazing and it at one time raised hopes of an unlikely Indian win.

The future for the young Pant is bright and with a huge learning curve ahead of him, Pant looks like a good prospect to nurture with better wicket keeping advice and practice.

HANUMA VIHARI- 3/10
Hanuma Vihari wouldn’t have got any idea that he would make his debut in the final Test against England. Indian team management decided to bring in Vihari and Shaw to replace Vijay and Kuldeep in the team and both waited for their chances.

While Shaw will have to wait longer, Vihari got a surprise call-up ahead of Karun Nair, who was with the team since the first Test, and Vihari made his Test debut count, as he scored a patient and masterful 56 in his first innings.

His defense looked compact and head remained still while meeting the ball with the middle of the bat. The second innings duck took a little sheen off his debut, but he showed that if given backing and enough chances, he can be a very good middle order bat for India in the long term.

R ASHWIN- 3/10

R Ashwin started the series with a bang with 4/62 and 3/59 in the first Test at Edgbaston. He also scored 126 runs in the four Tests he played along with 11 wickets he took. However, an injury to his hip limited his impact on the game against England.

On a turning pitch at Southampton, where Moeen Ali of England picked 9 wickets, Ashwin returned with three wickets and apart from the injury, his form also suffered as the series went on. Ultimately, he was dropped for the final Test, deemed not fit and with team management and Virat Kohli admitting that playing him in Southampton aggravated the injury.

But despite the injury, it was clear that Ashwin may no longer be the best spinner to trust on overseas tours. He is unplayable at home and in subcontinent conditions, but overseas, his impact and skills don’t result in wickets and match wins and Indian team should recognize and groom Kuldeep and other spinners.

RAVINDRA JADEJA- 4/10

Ravindra Jadeja spent four Tests waiting for a chance to play as Indian team continued to persist with a half-fit R Ashwin. Jadeja finally got a chance to play in the final Test at the Oval and made a big point with a brilliant 86* that reduced England lead to 40 runs.

He also chipped in with 7 wickets to boot for, including 4/79 in the first innings and 3 wickets in the second innings. With his one-off performance, Jadeja has almost justified the notion that he is a better bowler overseas for India even on pitches that don’t offer spin, since he bowls with pace and straight within stumps.

ISHANT SHARMA- 8/10
The Indian pace spearhead Ishant Sharma bowled with speed and intent throughout the series and picked 18 wickets with a best of 5/51 in the first Test at Birmingham which India came mighty close to winning.

Ishant was always at the top of the English batsman, dismissing Alastair Cook almost every time he came to bat. He bowled with great pace and swung and moved the ball both ways with the new ball and bowled with gusto through tough spells.

It was a big tribute to his fitness that he bowled long spells in all the Tests and only broke down in the final Test, where India went in with three quicks, as England piled on the runs on India.

Ishant will be the main weapon for India in Australia and given his niggle, it would be better if he is rested a bit before the series.

JASPRIT BUMRAH- 7/10
Jasprit Bumrah was sorely missed in the ODI series that India lost 2-1, and in the first Test which India lost with a margin of a hair’s width. However, India missed him and Bhuvneshwar Kumar the most in the Lord’s Test where the conditions were perfect for both of them to run through the English batting.

But the difference became apparent when Bumrah returned in the 3^rd Test at Nottingham. He picked 5/85 in the England second innings to rout them quickly as they chased 521 runs and Jos Buttler scored his maiden Test century (106).

Bumrah bowled out of his skin to pick 11 wickets in the series at an average of 25.92. He was for the first time seen bowling long spells and troubling the batsmen with both the old and new ball.

However, his habit of bowling no ball cost India once in the series and it is something that he should rectify with the help of bowling coach and the head coach, as it is becoming a bit hindrance in Bumrah being called a complete bowler.

MOHAMMAD SHAMI- 6/10
Mohammad Shami played all the five Tests and bowled at top speed at all times of the play. This is a tribute to his fitness as this was the first time he didn’t break down in middle of the series.

He picked 16 wickets in the series with a best of 4/57 and at an average of 38.87. That haul of 16 wickets should have been 20 or 21 given the number of times he beat the bat and his luck just didn’t do the justice to the way he bowled. He troubled the right-handers and left-handers with ease and bowled with top speed even at the end of the day to help India pick wickets.

Shami will definitely prove to be a big asset for India in November when India tours down under.  

KULDEEP YADAV- 0/10
Kuldeep Yadav just played one Test, at Lord’s because of a bizarre and wrong selection decision by the team management. The pitch was green and conditions were tailor-made for fast bowlers due to rain washing out a whole day.

He didn’t manage to pick any wickets in the 9 overs he got to bowl in the Test and was sent back to India to prepare for West Indies series.

UMESH YADAV-2/10
Umesh Yadav played in that one Test at Birmingham in place of injured Jasprit Bumrah and picked three wickets. He bowled with pace but lacked discipline. He was dropped in favor of an extra spinner at Lord’s and Bumrah returned in time for the third Test match.