The Indian bowlers wrapped up the proceedings late into the second session of the fifth day to clinch the one-off Test against Bangladesh at Hyderabad. For the hosts, however, things turned out to be a little more difficult then what they initially anticipated, thanks to a stubborn batting resistance from the Bangladesh’s lower-order. Nevertheless, on the last day, it was just a matter of time before Ravichandran Ashwin and Co. completed the formalities.
One noticeable aspect about this game was the pitch, as it hardly resembled an Indian surface. Throughout the duration of the game, the wicket remained a paradise for batting, as the batsmen could play their drives on the up without any worries. As a matter of fact, very few deliveries from the spinners turned viciously or took off unexpectedly.
It is this very aspect of being a difficult bowling pitch, which makes this Indian victory far sweeter. Indian coach Anil Kumble spoke about the very same reason post the team’s victory and highlighted that it wasn’t an easy pitch for the bowlers.
“This was a very good surface to bat on, we had to literally bowl 200+ overs to secure 20 wickets, to bowl more than 120 overs in first innings and then come back and bowl another 100 overs, it was brilliant,” said Kumble.
“I expected this track to break up a bit more on the fourth and fifth day, but nothing like that happened, it held on – great effort from our bowlers. When we have a long home season, we need to look after the bowlers. It’s a luxury to have 5 bowlers, but the batsmen have been very good right throughout the nine Tests.
“We were not worried about the surface in any of the Tests over the ongoing home season, just wanted to get the job done. It was a very satisfying win, Bangladesh have come along really well in recent times, it was a good victory in the end. We are now looking forward to face Australia, it will be a tough 4-Test series, really pleased with all the things we are doing, the top-order, middle and lower order- everyone has chipped in, it augurs well for our future,” Kumble concluded.