ENG vs IND 2025: 'You can't come out arrogant' - Dinesh Karthik lambasts England's batting strategy after early collapse on Day 2 of Edgbaston Test

"How mentally strong you are, that is what Test cricket is, it is not going to be easy every time," Dinesh Karthik said.

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Dinesh Karthik and Ollie Pope
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Dinesh Karthik and Ollie Pope. (Photo Source: Twitter/X)

After Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bowl first in the second Test at Edgbaston, Birmingham, the Indian batters made the England bowlers toil hard, scoring 587 runs in 151 overs on the back of Shubman Gill's epic 269-run knock, along with excellent supporting roles played by Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ravindra Jadeja.

England got to bat in the final session on Day 2, and they didn't seem to be up for the challenge. The Three Lions lost three wickets in 20 overs, scoring just 77 runs.

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik lashed out at the England batters for trying to play too aggressively, not taking account of the conditions and the quality of the opposition bowlers.

"For sure, you have to put it on tired legs, more importantly, some very tired minds as well. How mentally strong you are, that is what Test cricket is, it is not going to be easy every time. You chose to bowl first, you ended up bowling 150 overs, and now as a batting team you need to come out and say, 'Alright, here we go, today, we might need to play till the day's play and then figure out how we want to play tomorrow'," Karthik said on Sky Sports.

Karthik felt that there was an air of arrogance in how the England batters went about their batting. The cricketer-turned-expert opined that England had learned how to add caution to their ultra-aggressive Bazball tactics, but that wasn't on display on Thursday, July 3.

"You can't come out arrogant, saying, 'Okay, I am going to play like it is the start of the day'. It does not work like that. Sometimes you need to buckle down, and I feel that, that is where Bazball has gotten better, but today we saw a glimpse of what we have seen in the past," he added.

Mohammed Siraj wreaks havoc at start of Day 3

England already had an uphill task in front of them on Day 3 as they were trailing India's first-innings score by 510 runs. They needed their best batter, Joe Root, to step up and bail them out of the difficult situation. However, Mohammed Siraj sent the right-handed batter packing off the first ball he bowled to him on Day 3. Root attempted to flick a delivery on leg-stump, but all he managed was a faint nick through to wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant.

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Stokes came out to the middle to replace Root, but the England skipper's stay lasted just one ball. Siraj bowled an accurate short delivery, and the southpaw got into a tangle. The edge went straight through to Pant, and Siraj picked up two wickets in as many deliveries. England have lost half their side with just 84 runs on the board and need a miracle to save this Test match.

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