The fifth and final Test between India and England got underway at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala on Thursday (March 7).
Opting to bat first, the visitors got off to an impressive start as the duo of Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley added 64 runs for the opening wicket.
However, Kuldeep Yadav pulled things back for India with the wickets of Duckett and Ollie Pope before the lunch break. The wrist-spinner could have dismissed Crawley shortly into the second session had India not missed a DRS opportunity.
Crawley, who was batting on 61 at the time, got a lifeline as India wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel wasn’t sure about a faint nick.
Kuldeep bowled a flighted delivery and Crawley looked to play the glance shot but didn't get it too well as the ball lobbed in the air off something. Jurel couldn't collect the ball to his left but it lobbed towards Sarfaraz Khan, who moved forward at short leg to complete the grab.
Sarfaraz was certain that the nick came off Crawley’s bat and he literally begged skipper Rohit Sharma to go upstairs. Shubman Gill also looked confident and tried to persuade the Indian captain to take review.
However, Jurel wasn't too convinced and Rohit preferred the keeper's point of view over Sarfaraz. Later, UltraEdge showed a small spike, much to the disappointment of the Indian camp.
As multiple angles were replayed on the giant screen, Sarfaraz broke into a sarcastic smile and shook his head. The camera also panned to Jurel, who wore a disappointed look.
On the other hand, Rohit Sharma acknowledged his error and offered a thumbs up to Sarfaraz with a jovial gesture.
Here’s the video:
In the end, Kuldeep Yadav removed Zak Crawley for 79 with a peach of a delivery. The wrist-spinner ran through the English batting line-up in the second session to claim his five-wicket haul (5/72).
R Ashwin (4/51) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/17) shared the remaining five scalps between them to help India bundle out England for 218 in the first innings.