Akash Deep's T20 Skills Shine as India Defeats England in Birmingham

As Akash Deep was included in the playing XI for the second Test against England at Edgbaston, Birmingham, he knew the enormity of the honour he was given. The 28-year-old replaced the best bowler of the current generation, Jasprit Bumrah, for the second time in his career and rose to the occasion, helping India register a historic win at the venue.

Akash sent a sense of reassurance in the dressing room with his accurate line and length and helped Indian bowling exorcise the demons of the first Test at Headingley, Leeds. The 28-year-old came as a breath of fresh air in the Indian bowling attack, which was deemed lifeless without Jasprit Bumrah.

However, Akash shut the critics by making the ball dance to his tunes and forcing the England Bazballers to kneel against quality bowling. Akash set the tone by wreaking havoc with the new ball in the first innings, dismissing dangerous Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope off consecutive deliveries. He further helped India break the massive 303-run stand between Harry Brook and Jamie Smith by getting rid of the former.

He further dismissed Chris Woakes for 5 (17) to register figures of 4/88 in the first innings - his best ever in a single innings. Later in the second innings, Akash was once again up to the task as he helped India get all-important scalps of Duckett and Joe Root before stumps on Day 4.

The delivery to Root in particular grabbed everyone’s attention as it sharply moved away after pitching and outfoxed the England batter, who had his stumps rattled while attempting to flick it on the leg side. Legendary India batter Sunil Gavaskar was mighty impressed with Akash’s delivery and mentioned that to get Root out like that was special.

Furthermore, Gavaskar also mentioned how Akash used his T20 skills to perfection to get rid of Jamie Smith in the second innings, who was once again proving to be a thorn in India’s flesh with his belligerent strokeplay. The England wicketkeeper decided to take on India’s short-ball ploy as he whacked him for a couple of sixes.

However, Akash mixed his pace to perfection on the following delivery and bowled him a slower bouncer, which resulted in Smith getting holed out on the boundary. Reflecting on the dismissal, Gavaskar stated that the Indian seamer used the tricks of the T20 game to get rid of Smith.

Earlier, Akash also dismissed Ollie Pope with a slower delivery in the second innings, who chopped the ball back onto his stumps and left Harry Brook flabbergasted with a vicious delivery which came back in sharply after hitting a crack. He finally put curtains on the England innings by getting rid of Brydon Carse and set up a massive 336-run win for the team.

Akash finished the match by registering his maiden five-wicket haul and ten-wicket haul, finishing with figures of 10/187 - the best by an Indian bowler at Edgbaston, Birmingham. Having bowled a match-winning spell at Edgbaston, Akash has sent a stern warning to England for the remaining three games, as the Indian bowling is only going to get better with the addition of Bumrah.

- Ends

Published By: Rishabh Beniwal Published On: Jul 7, 2025