Chris Woakes expressed his dissatisfaction with a couple of umpiring decisions that went against his bowling on Day 1 of England’s second Test against India at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
Woakes was the standout bowler for the hosts, claiming the wickets of KL Rahul and Nitish Kumar Reddy to finish with impressive figures of 21-6-59-2.
However, he missed the chance to make further inroads early in the innings after England chose to bowl first. Yashasvi Jaiswal survived an LBW appeal when the umpire’s call showed the ball was clipping only the top of the off-stump.
Shortly after, Karun Nair also survived an LBW shout after being struck on the pads while offering no shot. Jaiswal went on to score 87 while Nair made 31 off 50 balls.
“Well yes, it’s really frustrating. These are decisions which can go your way, but this is the game we play and we move on,” Woakes said in the press conference after the day’s play.
India ended the day in a solid position at 310 for 5 after 85 overs. Ravindra Jadeja and Shubman Gill stitched together an unbeaten 99-run partnership following the quick dismissals of Rishabh Pant and Nitish Reddy.
Despite India’s strong recovery, Chris Woakes believes that if England can break the Jadeja-Gill stand early on Day 2, they’ll be right back in the contest.
“It’s still a good pitch. There’s enough in it if you hit the right areas. We’ve got wickets at regular intervals. If we can break this stand early tomorrow, we’re still in the game,” Woakes said.
Woakes also had words of praise for Gill, who followed up his century in Leeds with another impressive hundred in Birmingham. The newly-appointed Indian skipper remained unbeaten on 114 off 216 balls, a patient innings that included 12 boundaries.
“It was a great hundred. He did really well for his team. He managed to absorb pressure and then capitalise,” Woakes added.
On Day 2, England will be looking for early wickets, while India will aim to capitalise on the partnership between Jadeja and Gill.
