Last Updated: July 26, 2025 08:07 PM
The Indian cricket team got off to its worst start in Test cricket under Gautam Gambhir’s coaching. The Indian batsmen crumbled in the fourth Test against England at Old Trafford, Manchester.
English pacer Chris Woakes wreaked havoc in the very first over and reduced India to 0/2.
Stuart Broad said on Jio Hotstar,
“Fresh legs, fresh bowlers. If you give your bowlers two nights’ sleep in a Test match, they’ll come out and make the ball talk.”
Broad further said, “Jaiswal tried to cut the second ball and missed, and he immediately started moving his feet around. You know when you’ve got lactic acid in your legs, you’ve got to move them and feel something. That told me mentally and physically, he was tired, and he was trying to change himself. Sudharsan… it was purely mental and physical fatigue, which is totally understandable in your second Test match when you’ve fielded for 160-plus overs.”
Woakes’ stormy innings
England scored 669 runs in the first innings to give India a huge lead of 311 runs. India’s bowling failed completely. The batting was even worse in the third innings. Woakes bowled the first over and sent Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudarshan to the pavilion in just five balls.
Yashasvi tried to flick the fourth ball, but the ball went into the hands of Joe Root in the slip. On the next ball, Sudarshan was out trying to leave a back-of-length delivery, when the ball took the edge of the bat and Harry Brook took the catch.
Worst start in Test history
This is the first time since 1983 that India lost two wickets for 0 in a Test innings. At that time in Chennai, Malcolm Marshall had dismissed Anshuman Gaekwad and Dilip Vengsarkar, but Sunil Gavaskar saved India by playing an innings of 236* runs.
This time India created a new record by losing two wickets in just five balls. Earlier in 2013/14, Trent Boult had taken two wickets in six balls in Auckland.
