The India vs England 2nd Test at Lord’s wasn’t just a battle between bat and the ball. The players from both teams were involved in a number of verbal duels throughout the course of the match. England’s sledging attempts, however, backfired as they ended up pumping up the Indians. KL Rahul, reflecting on the constant on-field chatter, has issued a stern warning to the hosts as far as the remainder of the series is concerned.
Be it James Anderson, Ollie Robinson, or a few other England players, the hosts didn’t leave a stone unturned to get into the heads of the Indian tailenders. England needed the likes of Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah to get out early, and repeatedly failed attempts got Joe Root & Co. to use their mind games more than their bowling.
The result remained an unsuccessful one with Ishant, Shami and Bumrah putting up one of their finest batting performances in the whites. KL Rahul, who was named the match of the match, reflected on the on-field banter and warned England that if they go after one of the Indian players, all 11 of them will come back at them together.
“That’s what you expect with two competitive teams, you know, you are always going to see great skills, a lot of heart and a few words as well. That only shows how much both team wants to win. We don’t mind a little bit of banter. And, you go after one of our guys, all 11 of us will come right back at them,” said the Karnataka lad.
Bumrah and Shami were constantly targeted by the Englishmen but the tactic came back to haunt the hosts as the duo put up an unbeaten 89-run stand for the 9th wicket. Rahul feels the bowlers were pumped to deliver and they did so even with the bat in their hands.
“That just got us going and the bowlers were really pumped and wanted to go out there and have a real crack at them. Really happy with the performance they have put in this game,” asserted the opening batsman.
