1st Test: Rahul, Sai Sudharsan fall on stroke of lunch as India reach 92/2

Leeds: India were well on their way to outrightly win the first session's play, but KL Rahul and B. Sai Sudharsan falling in six balls at the stroke of lunch meant the visitors' reached 92/2 in 25.4 overs on Day One of the first Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series at Headingley here on Friday.
For an hour and 54 minutes, India were running away with this session, all thanks to Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal sticking to the basics of batting well in England – being patient, leaving the balls well, and cashing on real loose deliveries, resulting in some superbly-middled drives, to share a brilliant 91-run opening stand.
But with Rahul and debutant Sudharsan falling softly for 42 and zero respectively, India squandered their well-earned advantage, allowing England to go into the lunch break with some happiness despite the hosts being made to toil hard for 90% of the time in the session. Though Jaiswal is unbeaten on 42 not out, he and new skipper Shubman Gill have a good resurrecting job to do.
Pushed into batting first, Jaiswal got India's first boundary of the series by prodding forward and defending with soft hands to take a boundary through gully off Chris Woakes. He grew in confidence with every drive, either going through mid-off or in the arc between cover and backward-point.
On the other hand, after getting a boundary off a thick outside edge, Rahul began showing his sublime cover-driving skills – pressing forward and then leaning into the drive off Chris Woakes for four. England's desperation for a wicket was so huge that they burnt a review when Josh Tongue trapped Jaiswal, who was hit earlier on the ribs by Carse, lbw with an inswinger, but replays showed the ball pitching outside leg-stump.
England not attacking stumps much meant they didn't have the precision to stop Jaiswal and Rahul from playing the glorious straight and cover drives, though a few attempted drives did fly over the slip cordon. Apart from slashing and driving off Stokes on consecutive balls, Rahul was picture-perfect in his cover drive – front foot towards the pitch of the ball, getting down on one knee, and playing with a high elbow.
But with Carse finding some late movement, Rahul had to stand up to defend against him and then shouldered arms against a full and wide delivery. But against a full and wide outswinger, Rahul couldn't resist the temptation and went for a drive, but nicked to the first slip, leaving the batter livid.
One brought two for England as Sudharsan faced instant baptism by fire – surviving an lbw appeal first ball, edging his second delivery past the slips, and coming close to flicking down the leg-side on the third ball.
But on the very next ball, the nervy Sudharsan again flicked down the leg-side but was caught by the keeper leaping to his right and departing for a four-ball duck off Stokes, as those two dismissals totally changed the session's outlook from all things India to shared one.
Brief scores:
India 92/2 in 25.4 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 42 not out, KL Rahul 42; Ben Stokes 1-20, Brydon Carse 1-23) against England

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

First Post

23 minutes ago

• First Post

Jaiswal reveals his mantra after slamming century on Day 1 of Headingley Test: 'If there is a loose ball...'

Yashasvi Jaiswal brought up a sparkling 101 in his maiden outing on English soil, forging a 129-run third-wicket partnership with captain Shubman Gill (127 not out) after a 91-run opening stand with KL Rahul (42) and helping India begin the first Test against England in Headingley on a dominant note. read more India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal celebrates after completing his century on Day 1 of the first Test against England in Headingley. AP Yashasvi Jaiswal appeared to have carried on from where he had left off against England at home last year, smashing a century on the opening day of the first Test against Ben Stokes' men at Headingley on Friday. Jaiswal made his first appearance on English soil on Friday but appeared to have years of experience in these conditions under his belt with his knock of 101 off 159 balls , which contained 16 fours and a six. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Jaiswal credits 'very good practice sessions' And in an interview with Sky Sports after stumps, the Mumbai batter revealed 'good practice sessions' and keeping things simple helped him get his maiden tour of England off to an ideal start. 'It was very, very good and we all did very well today. It was amazing to go out there and bat. Enjoyed the English summer as well. Very happy. I just try to be myself and try to go out there and enjoy the game and prepare really well. That's what I do all the time,' the Rajasthan Royals opener told Ian Ward and Ravi Shastri after close of play. 'We had very good practice sessions and before few weeks and we were trying to make it as simple as possible and try to play within an area. If there is a loose ball, I always believe that we need to go for it, and I really enjoyed it,' added Jaiswal, who has been India's designated Test opener since making his debut in 2023. Also Read | India's new Test era off to strong start as Jaiswal, Gill, Rahul show batting concerns were overhyped Jaiswal, who had scored a whopping 712 runs in the five-Test series against England at home last year, got India off to an ideal start with a 91-run opening stand with KL Rahul. He later stitched a 129-run partnership with Shubman Gill, who also brought up a century and remained unbeaten on 127 at close of play in his maiden outing as India Test skipper. 'Of course. He played amazingly. I think the way he was, he was very composed and calm all the time. I think he batted very, very well,' Jaiswal added during the chat after stumps, heaping praise on Gill. Thanks to Gill and Jaiswal's tons as well as vice-captain Rishabh Pant's unbeaten 65, India ended the opening day of the Headingley Test on a dominant 359/3 after 85 overs. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD

News18

43 minutes ago

• News18

'How Good Was India Today...': Former Captain Lauds Dawn Of Shubman Gill Era

Last Updated: Sourav Ganguly has lauded Indian batters Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal for their centuries, leading India to 359/3 on Day 1 of the Headingley Test vs England. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly on Friday praised the efforts of the Indian batters, giving a special mention to skipper Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal, as the duo scored centuries to take India to 359/3 at the end of Day 1 of the Headingley Test against England. Jaiswal and Gill announced their readiness to carry India's batting into the post-Virat Kohli-Rohit Sharma era, striking amazing centuries. Gill and Jaiswal shared a 129-run stand for a determined third-wicket stand that carried India to 221 from 92/2 after KL Rahul and debutant Sai Sudharsan were dismissed in quick succession. 'How good was India today? Start of a series day 1 .. so much improvement in Subhman Gill's test match batting in away conditions .. Yashasvi as usual superb again .. looked a quality team. A long series awaits @bcci," Ganguly tweeted on Friday night. Rishabh Pant was keeping vigil with Gill at close. But there was an underlying importance to the hundreds of Jaiswal and Gill other than giving a head-start on Day 1 of the five-match Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. This Indian batting line-up is a tad thin on experience after the recent retirements of former captains Kohli and Rohit, who played at the pivotal No. 4 and opening slots in their illustrious careers. Both Jaiswal and Gill aren't newcomers to the unforgiving Test arena, but there has been widespread anxiety over how the New Gen India stars would step into the big shoes of their predecessors. But the portents are quite bright, if the day's innings by Jaiswal and Gill are anything to go by. Jaiswal was the first to reach the three-figure mark, the fifth in his flourishing career, off 144 deliveries and Gill reached his landmark off 140 balls in the final passage of the day. But the way they reached that point was different. Jaiswal eschewed his natural flair as the first session offered its share of assistance to the English bowlers in the shape of movement and carry. tags : India vs England Rishabh Pant Shubman Gill sourav ganguly Yashasvi Jaiswal First Published: June 20, 2025, 23:53 IST

India.com

an hour ago

• India.com

1st Test, Day 1: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill Put India On Top Against England

A scintillating century by Yashasvi Jaiswal was followed by a sublime hundred on the Test-captaincy debut for Shubman Gill, before Rishabh Pant's typical pyrotechnics got him a rollicking fifty, as the trio ensured India had an absolutely dominating day in the first Test to kick-start the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy at Headingley on Friday. On a day in which India's new era began, Jaiswal marked his first Test innings in England with a superb 101 off 159 balls – laced with 16 fours and a six. Gill, coming out to bat at No.4 for the first time, showed his attacking prowess to be not out on 127 off 175 balls, while Pant launched his typical enthralling shots to be unbeaten on 65 off 102 balls and even completed 3000 Test runs as India ended Day One at a commanding 359/3 in 85 overs. While it was a brilliant day for India with two centurions, England had a tough day as their bowlers were made to toil hard. A wayward bowling performance meant England picked only three wickets – two of which went to skipper Ben Stokes. The final session began with Gill rocking back to cut Shoaib Bashir for four before Stokes used a wide of the crease angle well to hit the top of the off-stump and end Jaiswal's innings. Pant was right up to the task when he charged down the pitch and slapped over Stokes' head for four, inviting laughter out of astonishment from the England skipper. With some reverse swing on offer and Shoaib Bashir being impressive in his changes of angle, pace, and variations, Gill and Pant were cautious and got boundaries only when the balls were there to hit. Pant heaved a sigh of relief in the 68th over when his top-edge off Bashir just went over mid-wicket, before bringing out a pull and paddle to collect fours, before dancing down the pitch to loft the off-spinner for six. A fluent Gill then raised his Test century on captaincy debut in 140 balls with a sumptuous cover drive for four off Tongue and indulged in some animated celebrations in what was also just his second hundred in the format outside India. After that, Gill pulled and cut Josh Tongue for boundaries, even as Pant got his fifty with a toe-end on a slog-sweep off Chris Woakes, fetching him a quirky four. After Gill slashed Carse for four, an audacious Pant lofted Carse and Woakes for four and six respectively to end a sensational day of Test cricket for India.