Ben Stokes dropped his bat to the ground and shrugged in weary resignation as he was beaten again by the masterful Jasprit Bumrah.
He had given a similar response to an unplayable delivery that cut short his innings of 70 in the first Test and now, as his side looked again to their captain to rescue them, there was a touch of desperation to a delivery that stayed a little low and rattled into Stokes’ stump.
It really looked like England would claw their way to another position of superiority on the second day of this second Test when Zak Crawley came flying out of the traps in response to India’s 396 all out.
But once Stokes went to the brilliant Bumrah, who turned the game on its head with his world-class reverse swing bowling, England had a mountain to climb almost as dangerous as the one they climbed in Hyderabad last week.
How different it could have been for England had Crawley not left the door ajar for Bumrah and India to storm through by giving away his wicket to Axar Patel after scoring 76 of the most notable on his 26th birthday had scored runs you can imagine.
Jasprit Bumrah produced a sensational bowling performance on day two of the second Test
Bumrah picked up six wickets during the innings, notably destroying the stumps of Ollie Pope and Ben Stokes
It means the Indian fast bowler has now taken a whopping 12 wickets in the first two Tests
Crawley was sublime as England rattled at more than five per over, hitting two sixes and eleven fours, but fell to an edge in Patel’s first over trying to hit him through mid-wicket for a second successive boundary.
It would be easy to point the finger at Crawley as the catalyst for England’s demise, but for lack of a better phrase, this is how England play and this is how they have achieved so much in this extraordinary transformation of Test cricket .
There was certainly little they could do when Bumrah, remarkably, playing in only his sixth home Test, swung the ball backwards and gave an assessment of the England batting that no one could get past completely.
His immense skill and ability to discount what was still a flat Vizag delivery was highlighted by the reverse swinging yorker that completely flattened the middle and leg stumps of the man who made 196 in the first Test in Ollie Pope . It was completely unplayable and the biggest moment of another riveting day.
Before that, Bumrah had claimed Joe Root for the eighth time in Test cricket and added Jonny Bairstow and then Stokes, ending any chance England had of getting close to parity in the first innings, before his haul of completed five wickets by forcing Tom Hartley into an edge for Shubman Gill.
England started the day with ball in hand, with James Anderson taking two wickets
Rehan Ahmed would dismiss Bumrah later in the morning, his third wicket of the match
Shoaib Bashir would end the innings after dismissing Mukesh Kumar to take his third wicket of the match
India are missing their key slow bowler in Ravindra Jadeja here, but his replacement in left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav proved a worthy substitute as he started England’s slide by claiming Ben Duckett and adding Ben Foakes and Rehan Ahmed before Bumrah got the job done completed. by trapping Jimmy Anderson lbw.
It is no exaggeration to say that Anderson was previously almost as impressive as Bumrah in a morning session when England took India’s last four wickets for 32 as they were dismissed for what at the time felt like a score slightly below par used to be.
Anderson, who took up a new role as England’s only player at the age of 41 and began his 23rd year as an England player, was fantastic in an eight-over spell that lasted an hour and a quarter, taking two for took 17 and eventually got three for 47 from 25. tireless overtime.
It was a remarkable display of skill and endurance, including the wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal for a quite brilliant 209 in just his sixth Test.
Zak Crawley stepped into the middle for England and hit 74 runs before being dismissed
Axar Patel pulled the England opener past the wicket before Crawley cut a shot to Shreyas Iyer, who caught the strike at backward point
India celebrated after dismissing England’s Ben Duckett, who was caught by Rajat Patidar
How dependent India were on the 22-year-old in the absence of Virat Kohli and now KL Rahul and what a moment it was when Jaiswal smashed Slog Shoaib Bashir for six and four in consecutive balls to reach his double century.
Jaiswal celebrated it, arms outstretched, in the Jude Bellingham manner rather than at cricket conventions, and he looks set to become as big a star as the Real Madrid footballer, at least in this cricket-mad country, with his stunning performance. of shots.
However, despite all he has achieved, this was an important display from Anderson. He went into the Ashes with a groin injury and had a disappointing series as he watched his old strike partner Stuart Broad produce a storybook final of his own career at the Oval.
Anderson could have been forgiven for wondering whether he should have left at the same time as his great friend, but retirement apparently never crossed his mind and he arrived here in meager form, even for a cricketer who has never put any weight has worn.
Joe Root was going through a tough time at the crease after being dismissed for five runs by Bumrah
Captain Stokes achieved a score of 47, England’s second highest score of the day
But the England captain then received his marching orders from Bumrah
The fast bowler would cap a sensational day by claiming the wickets of both Tom Hartley and James Anderson
Now, after missing Mark Wood in the first Test, Anderson has started this series to give England the control they needed with such an inexperienced spin attack all around him and to prove that his skills are completely undiminished to stay.
At the other end of the scale, this was a very encouraging start for Bashir, who, when he took the last wicket of Mukesh Kumar, had finished with three for 138 from 38 overs and really looks like he is at this level after just six overs belongs. games for Somerset.
India had a lead of 143 in the first innings and extended it by 28 towards the end without loss. England, of course, overcame a deficit of 190 last week, but if they want to pull off another miracle, they will have to do it last. India, thanks to Jaiswal with the bat and Bumrah with the ball, is comfortably at the top after two matches. days – just like they were in Hyderabad. This time, however, they are strong favorites to make the most of their strong position.