With India taking on England in the final Test of the five-match series, underway at The Oval in London, the game has come down to the wire as the home side need only 35 runs to take the series win by
3-1 margin, whereas India still need four wickets in order to end the series in a stalemate. Notably, after India posted 374-run target, the Three Lions fought hard with Ben Duckett’s 54 and century knocks coming from Joe Root (105) and Harry Brook (111).
While they have so far scored 339/6 at stumps on day four, with Jamie Smith (2*) and Jamie Overton (0*) in the middle, they will hope to complete the run-chase in the starting hours. On the other hand, the Indian bowlers will also not relent as they will hope to restrict them below the target, but will hope for Akash Deep to remain completely fit.
Going in with a half-fit bowler is a crime: Navjot Singh slams Indian team management
Seeing Akash Deep struggle with his fitness on day four of the ongoing Test, former Indian cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu was seen slamming the team management for going with a half-fit player. Notably, Akash Deep missed the fourth Test due to a groin injury he sustained in third Test at Lord’s and later was hit on the shin off Harry Brook’s shot just prior to the lunch.
Akash Deep’s injury came further into the limelight after skipper Shubman Gill was seen asking him if he had taken a pain-killer injection on day four. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Sidhu exclaimed, “On the English commentary, it was clearly heard that the question was whether he (Akash Deep) took an injection or not. You are playing a bowler in a Test match after giving him an injection, while a fit left-arm pacer like Arshdeep is sitting on the bench. Why didn’t you play him?”
Sidhu further added, “Going in with a half-fit bowler is a crime. It is a cardinal, heinous error. Because your other two bowlers, who are meant to be racehorses, end up becoming workhorses. Look, the most disappointing thing is that you keep compromising on your bowling again and again. Akash Deep, I would say, was a great success story. He won you a match, then got injured. And now you have played a half-fit Akash Deep. Today, it was completely exposed. The ball is going a foot wide on the left side. He is not able to bend. He cannot get down. He is trying to play football, and even that he cannot manage. He is clearly in discomfort.”
It is to be noted that in the first innings, Akash Deep finished with the figures of 1/80 in his 17 overs. In the second innings, he has so far picked one wicket and conceded 85 runs in his 20-over spell. However, he played a gritty knock of 94-ball 66 in the second India innings, earning accolades from every corner.
