‘Every team’s tail contributes, ours barely does’ – Aakash Chopra points out India’s lower-order weakness

Akash Chopra observed that India’s batting collapse has become a concern because the middle and lower+order have not been able to contribute, likening it to tumbling Jenga pieces.

After four days of exciting cricket in the first Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 at Headingley, Leeds, India had established a solid position for themselves. But if their lower-order batsmen had been a little more tough and determined, they could have swept England out of the Test match.

India must take all ten wickets to lead the five-match series 1-0, while England needs 350 runs to win on Day 5. India is favoured by some, while England is favoured by others to use their ‘Bazball’ antics to chase down the difficult 371-run mark.

After KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant stitched a possibly game-changing 195-run partnership for the fourth wicket, India appeared poised to set a significantly higher total in a shorter amount of time. At 287/3 in the second session, India was cruising.

At the stroke of tea, though, Pant was removed after scoring an incredible 118 from 140 balls. The tourists were rolled over for 364 runs in the day’s last session, with wickets falling at regular intervals. India experienced a batting collapse for the second time in the Test match. They lost their final seven wickets for 41 runs in the first innings.

“Two collapses and two amazing centuries. In the first and second innings, there were two collapses. Are we playing Jenga? There are so many collapses. In Indian cricket, collapses are now commonplace. Everyone’s tail wags in general, but ours is so small. As soon as it begins, it ends. That is a problem, then. In a YouTube video, he stated, “It looked like you were going to score 550-575 at one point in the first innings, but it was not to be.”

“There were anticipation that you would score a lot of runs and advance far here as well, but it hasn’t occurred again since wickets have fallen one after another, including Karun Nair and Shardul Thakur. While Ravindra Jadeja was playing, Bumrah, Siraj, and Prasidh were our three or four No. 11s. He clarified, “It saddens that Shardul has turned into a No. 9.

The performance of Ravindra Jadeja could determine the outcome of this match: Aakash Chopra

England will need to put up a lot of effort on Day 5 if they want to win the Test match, according to Chopra. The former cricket player who is now a broadcaster predicted that India would win, but he also mentioned that a draw might occur. Chopra believes that in order for India to win the Test match, Ravindra Jadeja will need to be instrumental.

“England can’t win with ease. India is the only squad that can win with ease. Even a draw is possible, but England will need to put in a lot of effort to win. The way that Ravindra Jadeja plays could determine the outcome of this match. Chopra noted that Jaddu had once claimed seven wickets in Chennai, where KL Rahul had made 199 and Karun Nair had scored a triple hundred.