During this week’s second Test match between India and England at Edgbaston, Birmingham, Akash Deep has been a target. The Bengal seamer put India in a commanding position to win their first-ever Test match at Edgbaston after taking four wickets in the first innings and then a couple more in the second innings on Day 4.
Prior to the Test match, Akash Deep had stated that he had anticipated that the English weather would be favourable to the seamers. But when he got to England and saw that the circumstances were quite similar to those in India, where fast bowlers rarely get surface help, he felt defrauded.
But in the closing moments of Day 4 of the Edgbaston Test, the 28-year-old deceived Joe Root by bowling a peach of a delivery to dismiss him, according to former India cricketer and national selector Saba Karim.
“Akash Deep claimed to have felt deceived by the wicket since it resembled an Indian wicket, but in this case, he deceived Joe Root.
In an interview on Sony Sports, Karim retorted, “The batter is compelled to believe that the ball will only come in from that angle when you are angling it in from wide of the crease.”
Karim said that most batters would have attempted to play the unplayable ball to the on-side like he did, and that the former England captain couldn’t have done anything different.
“What can the batter do if the ball straightens after pitching? It was undoubtedly an unplayable delivery if you were to bowl such a ball to a great hitter. 99.9% of the hitters, including Joe Root, would have played similarly in the direction of the onside. That’s what Joe Root did too, and Akash Deep really opened him up,” Saba noted.
You believe the ball will only enter from that angle as a batter: Hemang Badani
Hemang Badani, the head coach of the Delhi Capitals and a former cricket player for India, described how Root was duped by Akash Deep delivery.
“The ball was fantastic. He was thoroughly thrashed. He made an angle. He made a huge angle, went wide off the crease, and even touched the side line before forcing the ball to go straight. “You feel like the ball will only come in from that angle as a batter,” he said.
“Joe Root had no chance once the ball straightened after pitching. Cricket’s rule states that the ball cannot straighten from a seam position angle that is towards the fine leg. Joe Root didn’t make a mistake, in my opinion. After pitching, the ball vanished. The ball isn’t playable. “This was the best ball of this Test match, in my opinion,” Badani said.
In order to win the Test match on the last day, England needed to score an additional 536 runs after finishing Day 4 at 72/3. At Edgbaston, India needs just seven wickets to snap their protracted losing streak in Test cricket.
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