Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq heaped praise on the Indian cricket team for their brilliant performance in the first Test against England but said the result wasn’t “ideal” for the tourists after the game ended in a draw on Sunday (August 8) at Trent Bridge, Nottingham.
Team India was in a great position in the first Test of the five-match Test series, and even scored 52/1 while chasing 209 runs for the win, but the weather played a spoilsport and Day 5 was abandoned due to rain, and the game was eventually ended in a draw on Sunday.
Analyzing the first Test between England and India in Nottingham, Inzamam said the way India played at Trent Bridge has set a benchmark and demonstrated the brand of cricket they are going to play in the ongoing five-match Test series in the UK.
Inzamam said on his official YouTube channel, “According to me, it was not an ideal result for India. Analyzing the match situation going into Day 5, I thought India's chances of winning the match were 80%. Team India had already scored more than 50, and chasing a target of around 200 did not look that difficult for them. But rain intrusions are common in cricket. Team India has set a benchmark in the first Test and demonstrated the brand of cricket they are going to play in the series.”
Pakistan batting great was particularly impressed with Jasprit Bumrah, who returned with the impressive figures of 4/46 in the first innings and 5/64 in the second innings against England.
He added, “Especially their bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah took four in the first innings and five wickets in the second innings. So many bowlers are capable of scalping nine wickets in a match. But the way Bumrah bowled and the manner in which he set up dismissals of key England batsmen make him stand out from the rest. Overall, it was a very fantastic effort from Bumrah, and the rest of the bowlers supported him.”
While pointing out India’s middle-order collapse, Inzamam said the tourists would be happy with the contributions from the lower order in the first innings while saying the batting got a bit easier on Day 4 in the first Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham.
The former cricketer further noted, “From England's second innings, it was clear that batting got a bit easy. But Indian bowlers bowled well to restrict them to 303. If we look at the whole match, Team India would be happy with the contributions from the lower order in the first innings.”
He signed off by saying, “The middle-order failed in the batting department, but the likes of Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja scored for the team. It is the new frame of mind in international cricket these days. Even the tailenders try to contribute to the innings until the end of the line-up.”
