India lost to England in the first Test match in Hyderabad© AFP
The Indian cricket team slumped to the fifth position in the World Test Championship (WTC) points table after losing to England in the first Test match in Hyderabad on Sunday. India dominated major parts of the match but a brilliant innings from Ollie Pope and a seven-wicket haul from Tom Hartley clinched the victory for the visitors. Following the loss, India have just two wins from their five matches in the WTC and a PCT of 43.33. That puts them behind the likes of South Africa, New Zealand and Bangladesh. Australia top the list with a PCT of 55 despite losing the second Test against West Indies in Gabba.
See the updated WTC table here:
Debutant spinner Tom Hartley took seven wickets as England pulled off a dramatic 28-run upset win over India marked by a stellar batting performance by Ollie Pope in the opening Test on Sunday.
“Since I’ve taken the captaincy on… it’s 100 percent our greatest victory,” England skipper Ben Stokes said.
Chasing 231 for victory, India were bowled out for 202 in the final over of an extended third session of play on the fourth day in Hyderabad, as Hartley got Mohammed Siraj stumped with his left-arm spin to trigger celebrations from the England camp.
Pope stood out with his 196 to bring England bouncing back from being 190 behind at the start of their second innings to lead the five-match series 1-0.
Hartley, who got his five-wicket haul after he bowled wicketkeeper-batsman K.S. Bharat, kept coming back to return figures of 7-62 and a match tally of nine wickets.
“It’s unbelievable,” Hartley said after the match, adding that the win was “not going to sink in” for some time.
“I’m over the moon,” he added.
India came into the high-profile encounter as favourites on home soil, with an unbeaten Test series record since 2012 when Alastair Cook’s England beat them 2-1.
(With AFP inputs)
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