In the ongoing first test between Pakistan and England in Multan, the visitors suffered another injury setback as opener Ben Duckett dislocated his thumb while taking a catch on the field. With several key players already dealing with injuries, England faced a tough challenge as they struggled to contain the Pakistani batting line-up, which put up a mammoth total of 556 runs in their first innings. Despite some brilliant fielding efforts, including a one-handed stunner by Aamer Jamal to dismiss Ollie Pope, England was unable to turn things around and were under pressure at the end of day two.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma came out strongly and defended young batsman Yashasvi Jaiswal after England opener Ben Duckett made comments on his batting. Duckett had stated that England should take some credit for Jaiswal's attacking style of play. However, Rohit responded by pointing out that Ben Duckett hasn't been watching Rishabh Pant's explosive hitting. Meanwhile, former England captain Nasser Hussain also criticised Duckett for his statement and praised Jaiswal for his success, stating the importance of learning from other players. In his press conference, Rohit also spoke about the importance of domestic cricket and its role in helping players improve their skills. The debate for IPL's priority over domestic cricket has been ongoing, with players like Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer being absent from the Ranji Trophy scene.
Team India captain Rohit Sharma responds to England opener Ben Duckett's claim that Jaiswal's batting style is influenced by the "Bazball" approach. Rohit playfully reminds Duckett of Rishabh Pant's explosive performances, implying that the England team may not have been aware of Pant's skills on the field. Jaiswal has been India's top performer in the Test series against England, with an impressive 655 runs in four matches.
In a thrilling day two of the third cricket test match between England and India, opener Ben Duckett shone with an unbeaten knock of 133 runs. This was also his third test century, which he scored in just 88 balls, making it the quickest hundred by an England batter against India. On the other hand, India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin achieved his 500th test wicket but had to withdraw from the match due to a family emergency, leaving India with 10 men for the rest of the match. England ended the day at 207-2, still trailing India by 238 runs.
Ben Duckett's old tweets resurfaced online, where he had criticized Indian captain Virat Kohli and the Royal Challengers Bangalore team, calling them a joke. Initially, he received backlash from CSK fans for a crude tweet about MS Dhoni's wife. Now, it is the RCB fans who are attacking him for his derogatory and mocking comments about the superstar player and the franchise. This controversy comes during the ongoing Test series between India and England, where Duckett has been performing well but has failed to convert his starts into big scores. There is no confirmation from Virat Kohli about his availability for the upcoming Test matches, as he is believed to be abroad due to a family emergency.