India Scared Of England's Batting? Harry Brook Makes Big Claim Before 4th Test
Harry Brook believes India were 'scared' of England's chasing ability, leading them to set a 'ridiculous' target in the second Test.
England's Harry Brook believes India were 'scared' of his team's chasing ability in the second Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, which led them to set a 'ridiculous' total for the hosts.
India secured a 180-run lead in the first innings of that Test and used the significant amount of time left in the match to bat till just before Stumps on the fourth day, setting a target of 608. Some felt it was a gamble that Indian bowlers would be able to bowl England out in just over three sessions. Whereas others thought it was a well-thought-out tactic to entice Ben Stokes and Co. to go after a target they can't reach and extract mistakes.
It worked and England were out for just 271. But Brook felt it was more due to fear of them successfully chasing 372 in the first Test at Headingley, even saying that it gave them 'confidence' for the third match.
'We saw them set a ridiculous total for us at Edgbaston. They were a little bit scared of setting us a total that we could potentially get. So that played into our favour and gave us a lot of confidence as well, going into other games going forward," Brook said.
He believes that the confidence reflected in England's narrow, 22-run win at Lord's where there bowlers kept the effort up in a variety of conditions and snatched all available points.
'Chasing that total at Headingley was an unbelievable win as well. And then obviously last time, the fight and determination we showed to get that last wicket, and the skills and patience that Stokes showed as well throughout that period where we couldn't quite find a wicket, it was awesome to watch. I'm sure it kept everybody on the edge of their seat," he added.
England now lead the series 2-1 with two Tests to go. India, despite being bogged down by injuries to players like Akash Deep and Nitish Kumar Reddy, will aim to settle the score at Old Trafford when the fourth Test begins on July 23.
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