England Star Put In The Same Breath As Virender Sehwag, Given Ultimate 'World XI' Praise
England opener Ben Duckett slammed an excellent 149 on Day 5 of the first Test against India to guide his team to a sensational victory. Duckett scored as many as 211 runs in the first Test across both innings, winning the 'Player of the Match' award as England pulled off the second-highest successful run chase on English soil. Former England coach and reputed commentator David 'Bumble' Lloyd has reserved the highest praise for Duckett, comparing him to India's legendary maverick opener Virender Sehwag.
Lloyd mentioned that Duckett can play the same role that Sehwag used to play for India. Sehwag was regarded as a revolutionary opener in Test cricket, scoring over 8,500 runs at an average of nearly 50 and a strike-rate of more than 80.
"Ben Duckett has come a long way since he poured a drink over Jimmy Anderson on an Ashes tour. He is now England's answer to Virender Sehwag and opening the batting in your World XI," Lloyd wrote in his column for England-based newspaper The Daily Mail.
"The reverse sweep is such a natural shot for him. He plays it for fun. It's no surprise to learn he was a good hockey player at school because it's like a hockey shot," Lloyd added.
Ben Duckett believes a change of mindset has inspired his successful return to Test cricket after a brilliant century laid the foundation for England's remarkable win in their series opener with India.
Duckett's commanding 149 was the key innings as England successfully chased an imposing total of 371 to win by five wickets in the first Test at Headingley on Tuesday.
It was another milestone moment for 30-year-old Duckett since returning to the England side in December 2022.
His 30 appearances in his second spell as a Test cricketer have yielded 2,511 runs at an average of 47.37 and a strike rate of 88.07.
Duckett's heroics at Headingley saw him lauded by former England captain Nasser Hussain, who labelled him "the best multi-format batsman in the world".
Duckett said his success was down to an improved mentality after he had been criticised for getting himself out with needlessly flamboyant shots.
"My mindset personally is a bit different to what it has been over the last couple of years," he told reporters.
"Potentially there's a bit of maturity kicking in. Playing more Test matches, learning from mistakes, is number one.
"Failures are easy to make changes and learn from, rather than just when you do well," Duckett added.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Gazette
43 minutes ago
- India Gazette
Jofra Archer returns as England announce squad for 2nd Test
London [UK], June 26 (ANI): England announced the squad for the second Test against India, starting from July 2 at Edgbaston, with pacer Jofra Archer included in the team after over four years. England is leading the five-match series 1-0 following a five-wicket win at Leeds. The 30-year-old right-arm quick returning to the England Test since February 2021 will be looking to add to his 13 Test caps at Edgbaston next week, as per an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) release. Archer has 42 wickets at an average of 31.04, with the best figures of 6/45. Archer played his first red-ball contest in more than four years earlier this week when he turned out for Sussex in their four-day match against Durham at Chester-Le-Street and showed glimpses of his best as he scored 31 with the bat and collected figures of 1/32 from 18 overs as the teams played out a draw, as per ICC. Other than that, the squad remains unchanged. England Men's Test squad for 2nd Test: Ben Stokes (capt), Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes. Coming to the first Test match, India was put to bat first by England. Centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal (101), skipper Shubman Gill (147) and Rishabh Pant (134) pushed India to 471, with Ben Stokes being the leading bowler with figures of 4/66. England also delivered a fine reply with the bat, as a century from Ollie Pope (106) and fifties from Harry Brook (99) and Ben Duckett (62) pushed them to 465, giving India a slender six-run lead. Jasprit Bumrah was the pick of the bowlers, taking five wickets. India took a strong lead in the second innings, with centuries from KL Rahul (137) and Pant (118) taking them to 364. India led by 370 runs, but it was a lower-order collapse that prevented the lead from being even more massive. Brydon Carse and Josh Tongue took three wickets to stand out among bowlers. In the chase of 371 runs, England started off well with a 188-run stand between Zak Crawley (65) and Ben Duckett (149). However, a few quick strikes reduced them to 253/4, placing India in a balanced spot. However, Joe Root (53*) and Jamie Smith (44*) took England home, despite two wickets each from Prasidh Krishna and Thakur. Duckett took home the 'Player of the Match' award. (ANI)
India.com
an hour ago
- India.com
After WTC final, ICC decides to change 8 BIG rules of Cricket
Cricket match. (PIC - X) New Delhi: At this time, the eyes of cricket fans are fixed on the India vs England Test series. Meanwhile, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced 8 major changes in all formats of cricket. These changes have been made after the World Test Championship 2025 final. The rules related to Test cricket have come into effect from the start of the World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle. At the same time, the rules related to the white ball format will come into effect from July 2. 8 new rules of ICC: 1- Stop clock rule introduced in Test cricket After the white ball format, the ICC has now implemented the stop clock in Test matches as well. Under which now the fielding team will have to start the next over within 60 seconds of the end of the previous over. If this does not happen, the umpires will first give two warnings. After this there will be a penalty of five runs every time. The warnings will be reset after 80 overs. 2- Only one ball will be used after 35 overs in ODI At present, in ODI cricket, a team had to bowl 25-25 overs using two balls. But now from July 2, the team will be allowed to use only one ball after 35 overs in ODI. 3- Changes have also been made regarding saliva rules Applying saliva on the ball is still banned. In such a situation, many times the team tries to change the ball by applying saliva. But now this will not happen. Now the umpire will decide completely whether the ball should be changed or not. Let us tell you that a penalty of five runs is still given for deliberately violating the rules. 4- Catch will also be checked on no ball Earlier, when a no ball was given, it was not checked whether the catch was correct or not. But now the catch will be checked even after a no ball. If the catch is correct, then the batting team will get only one run. On the other hand, if the catch is not correct, then all the runs they make on that ball will be counted. 5- Penalty will be imposed for taking short runs If a batsman deliberately takes a short run, then a penalty of 5 runs will be imposed on the batting team. Also, which batsman will take the strike, this will be decided by the fielding team and the umpires. 6- There are rules for appeal against the batsman for two types of out Under this rule, if there is an appeal for LBW and run out against the batsman, then the TV umpire will first check the LBW. Because this has happened first and if the batsman is out, then the ball will become dead right there. 7- Big change regarding catch According to the new rule, now any fielder can touch the ball only once while bouncing in the air outside the boundary. If a fielder pushes the ball inside the boundary while in the air, then it will be considered legal only when he comes inside the boundary and takes the catch. 8- Changes in DRS rules ICC has also made changes in the DRS rules, if the batsman is given caught out and the review clearly shows that the ball has hit the pad, then now the third umpire will also check for LBW. During this, if 'umpire's call' comes in ball-tracking, then the batsman will be given out.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
an hour ago
- First Post
Rahul praised for commitment after reaching England early despite recently becoming a father: 'He could've easily said...'
KL Rahul, who had welcomed a daughter with wife Athiya on 24 March, had featured in the second unofficial Test between India A and England Lions that took place just two weeks after Delhi Capitals' final game of the 2025 Indian Premier League. read more KL Rahul had scored a superb 137 in the second innings of the first Test between India and England at Headingley, though the knock ultimately went in vain. AP Former India cricketer Hemang Badani heaped praise on senior batter KL Rahul for his commitment, especially for showing up in the tour of England earlier than many of his teammates and playing a practice game despite recently becoming a father . Rahul, who is the senior-most member of the Test team following Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's retirements from the format last month, had landed in England before a majority of the Shubman Gill-led squad after playing his maiden season with Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD And just two weeks after DC, who had failed to reach the playoffs, played their final game of the season, Rahul featured in India A's second unofficial Test against England Lions in Northampton, where the wicketkeeper-batter scored a fluent 116 followed by 51. Rahul and wife Athiya Shetty had welcomed a baby daughter on 24 March. The star cricketer's paternity leave, however, was limited to DC's first game of the season, against Lucknow Super Giants in Visakhapatnam which took place on the same day he became a father. Rahul rejoined the Capitals in time for their second game, against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the same venue less than a week later, and would remain caught up with the gruelling tournament for the next two months. Badani salutes Rahul's intent 'I really liked the fact that he was someone who said, 'I want to go to England early. I want to play the side game.' Forget about the hundred he got — that came later. The intent — that's what matters. The intent to be there early, to be prepared, to be with the side,' Delhi Capitals coach Badani told The Times of India. 'Let's not forget, he's a young father, and I don't think his child is traveling with him initially. So for him to say, 'Country over my child' — that's a huge call. 'He could've easily said, 'I'm not playing the side game anyway, I'll just go straight to the Test match.' But he didn't,' he added. The batting practice that he got in the tour game came in handy in the series opener against England at Headingley, where Rahul scored a flamboyant 137 in the second innings in addition to 42 in the first. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The 33-year-old stood tall at a time when opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal and captain Shubman Gill, centurions in the first innings, were dismissed cheaply and his presence also helped designated wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant recover from a shaky start and go on to score a second consecutive century.
