KL Rahul hits century for India to leave England with uphill battle in second Test

India on 276/3 at the end of the first day of the second Test

(Getty Images)

Imagine for a second you are Joe Root. You wake up on the first morning of the Lord’s Test, it has been less than a week since you singlehandedly saved the first Test for your side. You were already without your star allrounder for the series and now one of your best and most experienced bowlers will be missing too – just for good measure the other mainstay of the bowling attack is an injury doubt as well. Things could certainly be going better.

But then perhaps things start to look up, James Anderson is ruled fit to play after all, the skies are bruised over north London, and when after a slight delay the toss finally takes place you win, remember the mantra about ‘looking up not down’ at Lord’s and send India in to bat – your fellow batsmen might have let you down in Nottingham but these are perfect conditions for English fast bowlers and you just happen to have the most successful ever in your side.

With the benefit of hindsight, this is the recommended moment for readers to end their Root-based reverie, continuing this thought exercise any further almost certainly verges on an act of masochism.

India after all would finish the day 276/3, if their batting order had been expected to fold easily then it was a huge disappointment to England, like trying to knock over a house of cards and discovering it’s made of brick and that all the pieces have been cemented together.

At least finally England were getting some good mental preparation for the Ashes in, building up that all-important muscle memory for long fruitless days in the field. Indeed raise the temperature and humidity by about 20 notches, swap out all the men in various shades of red trouser for an equally sartorially baffling smattering of mullets and/or hats constructed from watermelons and this could have been a day at the Gabba not Lord’s.

Chief tormentors for India were their openers, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. In the face of some good English bowling, the pair refused to give anything away, a study in concentration that patiently and deliberately moved India into an excellent position.

After almost 33 overs the pair had put on 100 unbroken runs, the bulk of the run scoring falling to Rohit who had 75 of them, Rahul content to take a back seat and settle in for the long haul.

There were occasional haunting glimpses of the day that England had hoped they would have in the field, Anderson bowling Rohit with a glorious delivery that bowled him jagging back and then in the same spell knocking over Cheteshwar Pujara – his edge to Jonny Bairstow at second slip marking the ninth time he has fallen to Anderson, only Peter Siddle has been a more consistent victim for the Englishman.

The day though belonged to Rahul, unafraid to trickle along soaking up pressure in the earlier parts of the day, good enough to cut loose later on, his century brought up with a clinical cut away for four, an understated celebration to the Indian team balcony as elegant as some of the drives he had caressed through the covers earlier. He would finish unbeaten at the close, a brilliant 127 from 248 balls, India firmly in the driving seat.

As an indicator of how sourly the day had gone for England, not even the late removal of Virat Kohli – caught by Root at slip for 42 off the bowling of Ollie Robinson with the second new ball – improved the overall picture for them hugely.

They will then start Day Two with the very real prospect of conceding a 400-run lead, the scoreboard now threatening to gang up with India’s bowlers to really put their beleaguered batsmen under pressure – not for the first time this is looking like a long old month ahead for England.