Duckett century signals spectacular England fightback in Rajkot
India v England, 16th February 2024.
One double centurion.
Two stunning individual centuries.
Three vastly different ways of reaching the “magical three figures”.
It was quite some day once more in the wide world of Test Match cricket and here it is, as it must be, in three sporting Acts:
Act One: Kane Williamson — The master batsman supreme
As I dreamed once more of attending the quaint, picturesque and tree lined oval cricket grounds of New Zealand their favourite cricketing son and national idol Kane Williamson was writing his own script once more. The story of the day was a simple one to write but New Zealand’s eventual, record breaking victory of 7 wickets whilst looking overwhelmingly dominant and comfortable was far from the 7 wicket win that will forever now be etched in the sport’s score book. Commencing the day’s play on an overnight 2nd innings score 40–1, New Zealand needed a further 227 runs to win and become only the second team ever in the history of the game to score 200+ runs in the 2nd innings to win at Hamilton’s beautiful “Seddon Park”. To upset the cricketing applecart for an underdog win for the ages, South Africa needed 9 wickets. But Kane Williamson simply produced an ultra professional performance as well as a masterclass in elongated determination not to be bested or lose his wicket and on paper at least, his nation secured a comfortable looking 7 wicket victory.
But it was never easy or comfortable as South Africa captain Neil Brand (who must take immense credit for the manner in which he cajoled the ragtag team around him as well as the inventive field positions that led to the demise of both New Zealand wickets to fall today, and in an almost mirror fashion too) as well as the rotation of bowlers Tshepo Moreki and Shaun von Berg around strike bowlers Dane Paterson and Dane Piedt. Every bowler deserved a wicket, especially debutant Shaun von Berg and Dane Paterson (who’s “snorter” to Kane Williamson mid-innings was the very dictionary definition of “unplayable” and a joy to re-watch on constant replay) but only the immensely impressive Dane Piedt secured wickets today, and his total of three was sadly never enough for the battling tourists. If the “Proteas” are in transition and evolution as I continually posit that they are, then they have a backbone of a starting XI going forward under the stewardship of Neil Brand.
But today was all about Kane Williamson and a master innings seemed inevitable from the very first delivery of the day and I can only describe his display as masterful, pugnacious, determined and ultra, ultra professional. Led by Williamson, New Zealand scored 67 runs for the loss of Tom Latham in the first session of play and 66 runs for the loss of Rachin Ravindra in the second to leave them chasing 94 runs to win in the day’s third and final session. Williamson himself scored 44 and 48 in these opening two sessions to rest at the Tea Break 92 not out from 176 balls received and after securing his 32nd Test Match century minutes after the resumption of play, I departed for my second Test Match of the day across the Tasman Sea in Australia.
In my absence, Williamson’s batting partner Will Young scooted his pre Tea total of just 11 not out to an eventual 60 not out whilst Williamson added a further 33 runs to his century and a seemingly comfortable victory by 7 wickets. But South Africa may be on the rise again in the coming months and years and Test Match cricket needs a strong and vibrant South Africa for the game to continue to thrive.
Kane Williamson’s 32nd Test Match century sees the 33 year old and 14 year veteran of the grand old game in 25th spot in the all time list of run scorers and just 100+ runs away from eclipsing luminaries such as AB de Villiers of South Africa, VVS Laxman of India and David Warner of Australia, and a further 350+ runs from overtaking Graham Gooch of England to become the 18th all time top run scorer in the history of Test Match cricket.
Last evening’s batting performance was a joy to watch.
Kane Williamson — The master batsman supreme.
"Ashes to Ashes" - Available via Amazon
"The Spirit of Cricket" - Available via Amazon
Act Two: “Annabel Sutherland is made for Test Match cricket”
Apart from a solitary hour, the ladies one-off Test Match in Perth and the third match in a series of five between India and England criss-cross each other’s timeline and hence I only watched an hour’s play in real time today before tuning into my main event, but the unequivocal story of the day was being played out in Perth’s famed “WACA” cricket ground. After bowling South Africa all out for a tepid and paltry 76 before gallivanting to a gargantuan 1st innings total of 251–5 and an overnight lead on 1st innings of 175, Australia stretched their lead by 39 runs in the hour’s play I watched live and Annabel Sutherland continued where she left off yesterday by reaching 71 not out before I turned my attention to Rajkot in India.
In my absence and now via a ten minute highlights package, the 22 year old from Melbourne reached her second all-time Test Match century (and first on her home turf of Australia) with consummate ease before running through the batting gears on her way to a stunning 150 and then, according to the sexiest voice in all cricket Mel Jones, she reached “the most magnificent double hundred you will ever see in Test Match cricket” with a beautifully lofted straight drive for a boundary 4. Sutherland would add a further 10 runs before finally being dismissed for an astonishing 210 from just 256 balls received, collecting 27 boundary 4’s and 2 boundary clearing 6’s on her merry way into the cricket record books forever more. Ably assisted by Ashleigh Gardner (65), Sophie Molineux (33) and Kim Garth (agonisingly left 49 not out), Aussie captain Alyssa Healy declared their 1st innings on a mighty 575–9 and a faintly ridiculous lead on 1st innings of 499 runs!
I posited in yesterday’s journal that Australia would wrap up this Test Match victory today but I hadn’t bargained for Annabel Sutherland crashing a double century or her captain Alyssa Healy wanting her team to continue batting for the vast majority of the day. But with South Africa needing to score 500 runs just to make Australia bat again and already deep in a hole at 67–3 on 2nd Innings, this Test Match is ending tomorrow, and in a historic winning fashion for the World Champion Aussies.
Act Three: Duckett leads England fightback with spectacular century
Turning my attention in conclusion to day 2 from Rajkot, it was a day of Test Match cricket that nearly had the cliched “everything”, veered wildly from one team to the other in terms of dominance, had the spectre of niggling injuries so common on a tour of this length, dropped catches from a usual exemplary England, the ultra rare penalty of 5 runs being awarded to England following Ravi Ashwin constantly running on the sacred centre of the wicket and then to top matters in an ever confusing manner, India battled brilliantly to a 1st innings runs total still 50 runs short, 50 too many for their visitors from England, who then promptly knocked off over 200 runs of their deficit on 1st innings in just under 3 hours of thrilling playing time.
Returning to the beginning of the day, England made as perfect a start as they did on day 1 by quickly removing Kuldeep Yadav (a brilliant out-swinger from James Anderson and his 696th all time Test Match victim) and yesterday’s centurion Ravi Jadeja brilliantly “caught and bowled” by Joe Root after stifling the batsman, frustrating him by cutting off any easy runs and forcing a false shot straight into his gleeful hands. England had taken 2 quick wickets for the cost of just 5 runs to India’s overnight total of 326–5 and now on 331–7, the tourists scented blood and a maximum 1st innings total of 400. Overnight, India will no doubt have been targeting 500 and so to finish on 445 all out would seem to be a happy medium yet still a frustrating runs total for both teams.
That India reached 445 all out was down to Ollie Pope and Ben Stokes dropping easy late innings catches and the nagging partnerships of Dhruv Jurel and Ravi Ashwin and tail-enders Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. A wicket-keeping batsman on debut, a legendary spin bowler and two fast bowlers simply took aim at the England bowling and flailed a combined 122 runs between them and at the mid-innings changeover before the day’s final afternoon session, India were well and truly in the ascendancy.
England openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett had to negotiate yet another of those tricky “no-win” 20 minutes of batting pre the Tea interval but did so without alarm and notched 31 runs in the process. Resuming for the day’s final session, Crawley simply couldn’t get going and would eventually fall to the bowling of Ravi Ashwin and his 500th all-time Test Match wicket that sees this future legend of the game just 17 wickets away from overtaking his Australian spin bowling contemporary Nathan Lyon and a further 2 away from surpassing West Indian great Courtenay Walsh to be the 7th highest wicket taker in the entire history of the game. Yet it was to be Ashwin’s only wicket of the session as he and his Indian teammates were caught in the whirlwind of Ben Duckett who had got started, racing to 19 not out prior to the Tea Break before scoring a faintly ridiculous 114 runs in the final session alone to end the day 133 not out.
There are no real adequate words to describe Duckett’s innings post the Tea interval. I’ve watched Australian David Warner hit a century in a session live, as I did England’s Harry Brook on the 2022 tour to Pakistan. But this was extraordinary, spectacular and defied my eyes to confirm they weren’t lying to me. He raced to 50 from just 39 balls as he shared yet another half century opening partnership with Zak Crawley before repeatedly rapping boundary 4’s and 6’s on his way to a 88 ball hundred and 133 not out overnight from just 118 balls received. Indian captain Rohit Sharma moved the field. Ben Duckett simply hit the ball to a different part of the boundary.
Rinse and Repeat!
A quite incredible century on a day full of them.
The only fly in the England ointment was the late and unlucky dismissal of Ollie Pope for 39 as the vice-captain looked in prime form for yet another century, but Joe Root (in desperate need of a Test Match century) accompanies Ben Duckett in the morning with England resuming on 207–2 and 238 further runs behind India on 1st innings.
Here’s the revolutionary rub:
This England team under the revolutionaries par excellence Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes will attack from the off tomorrow and if it comes off, as so often has been the case since the tour of Pakistan in 2022, they’ll not only match India’s 1st innings total but exceed it by 100+ runs come the end of day 3. But someone has to make that BIG score, Duckett maybe, Root’s much needed century perhaps or a masterclass from captain Stokes, but they have to bat all day tomorrow and bat big. England’s revolutionaries never take a backward step and are revolutionising this grandest of all games for a new audience and a new sporting age.
But I have a devil on each shoulder watching this England team, arguably perhaps the highest of all compliments. One says they have to “dig in”, be solid and accumulate runs without being reckless. The other says “fuck it!”, attack, attack, attack, foot on the opponent’s throat and really go for the jugular à la Australian World Champion teams, past and present.
It sure is a ride watching this England team, and Ben Duckett’s innings today is a shining example of the revolutionary fervor running rampant through a team determined to leave their mark on the storied history of this great and wonderful game.
Again, brilliant piece. I’m still getting used to the sporting terminology, but the layout you used for this one was really innovative. I liked the division by theatrical acts (Act 1, Act 2). And I believe you used “poetry quotation” feature to keep the first three lines tight together. And then, of course, the flow of it rapid and exciting. Great job!