England edge ahead as Joe Root scores century on in his 100th Test.
The opening days play of the 1st Test between India and England certainly lived up to expectations, and it was a surprisingly good day for the tourists.
After winning the toss and opting to bat, England will be satisfied with a scorecard of 263/3. But at the same time, they will have been bitterly disappointed to have lost opener Dom Sibley. He fell to the excellent Jasprit Bumrah in the final Over of the day.
Root Scores Century on 100th Test
The massive plus point for England though, is skipper Joe Root. The Yorkshireman continued his imperious form of late, scoring a century in this third Asian test in a row.
It was also Roots’ 100th Test appearance for his country.
For India, they had selection headaches from both positive and negative perspectives going into the match.
The positives were having Kohli, Ashwin, Bumrah, etc back available. But this meant dropping some of the guys who just performed so well in Australia. That was never going to be an easy.
They also had no Ravindra Jadeja available. This not only effects the balance of the team, but also has a negative effect on the fielding. Jadeja is by far the best fielder in this India side. And is also head and shoulders above anybody in the England team.
The Indian bowlers stuck to their task gamely with little help from the pitch. Sometimes you just need a batsman to make a mistake, and right up until the last Over, Root and Sibley barely put a foot wrong.
Sibley’s wicket does bring India right back into the contest, but for England are just ahead in this match now.
Latest 1st Test Cricket Betting
In the latest betting, its the draw that is the big mover. Pre match, the draw was 9/2, it’s now just Even money.
England’s odds have been cut from 7/2, to 2/1, while India have drifted out from 4/9, to 11/4.
