India vs Bangladesh Only Test, Day 2: 5 Talking Points

What an eventful 2nd day it turned out to be for Team India as they consolidated their position of strength and ended the day’s play in the driver’s seat. Bangladesh was yet again lacklustre in the field as India cashed in on the opportunities and made their way to 687/6 before Virat Kohli declared the innings to have a go at Bangladesh for the last 12 overs in the day. Beginning the day’s play at 356/3, India continued their domination as Virat Kohli became the only batsman to smash 4 double centuries in 4 consecutive series.

Wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha made a brilliant century in his comeback match as the Bangladesh bowlers toiled hard all day. Ravindra Jadeja also chipped in with a brisk half-century and shared an 118 runs partnership with Wriddhiman Saha for the 8th wicket. Bangladesh lost Soumya Sarkar early in their 1st essay as they finished the day’s play at 40/1 after 14 overs. While Tamim Iqbal is batting on 24, Mominul Haque is yet to open his account.

That said, here are 5 Talking points from the 2nd day’s play in Hyderabad

1. Virat Kohli smashes his 4th double century

Now, what do you say about Virat Kohli? This guy has taken batting to a whole new level and his exceptional consistency continued even in Hyderabad. He also became the first batsman in the history of the game to smash 4 double centuries in 4 consecutive Test series. Beginning the day on 11, Kohli began with successive boundaries of Taskin Ahmed in the 2nd over of the day. The boundaries came thick and fast as Kohli raced off to 150 in the 98th over.

The duo of Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli looked in complete control of proceedings as they kept on frustrating the visiting bowlers. Kohli reached the elusive double century mark in the 124th over of the bowling of Taijul Islam. It was a flighted delivery and Kohli attempted an uppish drive over the extra cover region. Though it didn’t hit the middle of the bat, it had enough pace to reach the boundary rope. He was dismissed immediately after reaching his double century. Replays showed that the impact was outside the off stump and Kohli would have survived if he had gone for a review.

Also read: Twitter Reactions: Another double hundred for Virat Kohli, another day of dominance by India

2.  Wriddhiman Saha makes a dream comeback

Wriddhiman Saha who is making a comeback after recuperating from the injury woes which he sustained during the England series made a strong statement as he made his way to his 2nd Test century in his short career so far. Though he survived some close shaves, Saha rode on his luck and smashed a brilliant century which propelled the hosts over the 650 mark.

Coming out to bat after the fall of Rahane’s wicket, Saha survived an early scare as Mushfiqur Rahim missed an easy stumping chase on his personal score of 4. He made full use of the missed chance and started playing some delightful shots. He went off to a slow start but gained momentum during the course of the innings. He reached his century in the 164th over by smashing Taijul Islam straight over the bowler’s head for a gigantic six. His unbeaten innings of 106 contained 7 fours and 2 hits over the fence.

3. Taijul Islam the pick of the Bangladesh bowlers

Despite mediocre performance from the Bangladesh bowlers, Taijul Islam bowled his heart out and despite going for more than 150, he finished with 3 wickets against his name. With the pitch offering something for the spinners, Taijul managed to get past the bat of most of the batsmen but the breakthroughs were few and far between. The offie had sent back Vijay yesterday itself with a full-length delivery.

He made his 2nd breakthrough in the 114th over when he removed Ajinkya Rahane with a full-length delivery. Rahane went for an expansive drive and the extra cover fielder Mehedi Hasan stuck onto a blinder. His last wicket came in the form of Virat Kohli as he left-arm spinner cramped him for room. Kohli attempted a cut but the ball thudded onto his pads. Kohli decided to go against the review despite replays suggesting that the impact was outside the off stump.

Also read: IND v BAN, One-off Test Day 2 Review: India well and truly on top

4. Mushfiqur Rahim’s missed-stumping

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim has made his mark in India but not necessarily in the way he wanted to. The little man has already been in the thick of things since yesterday when he went for a dubious review. Even earlier in the innings, he was discussing with his teammates for a review when the ball was nowhere close to the bat of Chetweshwar Pujara.

Even today, the captain of Bangladesh missed an easy stumping chance of Wriddhiman Saha who was batting only on 4 at that time. He eventually went on to cash in on the opportunity and remained unbeaten on a brilliant 106. As Saha stepped out of the wicket, Rahim gathered the ball cleanly. As Rahim was about to wipe out the bails he missed it on the first attempt and by the time he removed it eventually, Saha was back in his crease. It was a pathetic blunder by Rahim which will cost Bangladesh dearly through the course of the match.

 5. Virat Kohli takes a wonderful review

There is nothing that Virat Kohli can do wrong in international cricket at the moment. After declaring India’s innings on 687, India started off proceedings with Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. They were unable to provide breakthrough so Kohli employed Umesh Yadav into the attack with a couple of overs left in the day’s play.

It was the 12th over of the innings when Umesh Yadav induced a false shot from Sarkar. The ball pitched fullish on the off stump and swung in between Sarkar’s bat and pad. Kohli decided to go for the review spontaneously despite Saha not looking excited. It eventually paid off as replays suggested that it had taken the bottom edge of the bat of Soumya Sarkar. It was a brilliant review by Kohli who is having an exceptional time in each and every department of the game.

Watch: Indian skipper Virat Kohli gets it spot on