IND vs. ENG: Sunil Gavaskar Corrects Sarfaraz Khan and Shares What Don Bradman Told Him Once

During the second day of the fifth and final Test match of the five-match series against England at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on Friday, Sarfaraz Khan lost his wicket to a reckless shot on the first ball after tea. Sunil Gavaskar was not happy about this.

Ben Stokes dismissed Rohit Sharma for 103. Stokes has not bowled since the Lord’s Test in June because of a recurring knee issue that required surgery prior to Christmas. Padikkal then arrived to accompany Shubman Gill, another centurion of the day. Soon after lunch, England removed both of the set batsmen, and James Anderson bagged another big fish, with Gill on 110, for his 699th Test wicket. At No. 5, Sarfaraz left the Indian team and joined Padikkal. After England’s double-strike after lunch, the duo stabilized the situation for India and regained momentum.

After captain Rohit and Gill were removed, Padikkal and Sarfaraz, who together own only four caps, put up a 97-run fourth wicket partnership at tea.

By removing Sarfaraz for 56, Shoaib Bashir managed to end the seemingly lethal combination and provide some relief to the England team.

Sarfaraz’s stroke choice did not sit well with Gavaskar, who related a story he had heard from the great batter Don Bradman.

The ball wasn’t short enough for that shot; it was thrown high. takes a risk and pays for it. You are, after tea, playing the first ball, is what I mean. Give yourself a brief overview. “Every ball that I face, even if I am on 200, I think I am on 0,” Don Bradman once told me. On the commentary, Gavaskar said, “And here is [Sarfaraz] playing such a shot as the first ball of the session.”

Then, Padikkal had a unique event when he reached his half-century on his debut, making history as the sixth player in India’s top five to achieve 50 in this inning.

Soon after, Padikkal, who was attempting to defend from the crease, was bowled out for 65 by a brilliant delivery from Bashir. Subsequently, it seemed as if India was forming another solid alliance as Dhruv Jurel and Ravindra Jadeja worked together to increase the advantage beyond 200. However, Bashir got his fourth wicket when Jurel was dismissed after being caught at long-on.

Gavaskar expressed his displeasure at Jurel’s termination, stating, “It made no sense.”

Subsequently, Tom Hartley trapped Jadeja LBW to claim his first wicket of the game. After the batter reviewed the situation, ball tracking revealed that the ball had struck the batsman’s leg stump. In his 100th Test match, he dismissed Ravichandran Ashwin for a duck in the same over. After a little burst from the English spinners, Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah demonstrated calm batting to frustrate England.