Axar Patel's dream run in Tests continued on the second day of the Motera game as he took two wickets in the first three deliveries of England's second innings. Patel first removed Zak Crawley on the first ball, where the batsman played for a straighter delivery, however, it turned a touch and took his off-stump.
While Jonny Bairstow was given LBW out on the second ball, but replays showed it was missing the stumps and he survived. However, Patel didn't mind that at all. He drafted in an arm ball the next delivery and Bairstwo's leg-stump went for a walk as England were two down for nothing on the board.
Axar has been in breathtaking form in Test cricket as after taking seven wickets in the first Test, he took his best figures of 6/38 in the first innings of this Test, becoming only the third Indian bowler to take two five wickets hauls in first two matches of his Test career after Mohammad Nissar and Narendra Hirwani.
Earlier, England had a great first session as they 7 Indian wickets for just 46 runs as skipper Joe Root took 5/8 registering his best figures yet in the longest format of the game. Apart from Rohit Sharma, who made a brilliant 66, none of the Indian batsmen could offer any resistance as India folded for just 145 in their first innings, getting a 33-run lead.
