“Karlo Entertainment, England”: Virender Sehwag hits the bullseye out of the park after India's series win

The Indian cricket team on Monday registered a five-wicket win over England to conclude the five-match Test series. India's home superiority weathered the 'buzzball' storm as Rohit Sharma's men cruised to a hard-fought five-wicket win over England in the fourth and penultimate Test to seal a 17th successive series victory in their own backyard in Ranchi on Monday, setting up a harsh reality check. Visitors' approach is one-dimensional. Overnight 40/0 in the chase of 192 here, India returned home having survived a few hiccups with the opening duo of skipper Rohit Sharma (55 off 81 balls) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (37 off 44 balls) providing an ideal platform for others to build on with their over-the-top stand. 84 runs on the fourth day of the match.

After the win, Virender Sehwag took an interest in England. “Karlo Entertainment, England. Jeet jaisi boring cheez Bharat, Australia, New Zealand kar lenge (Focus on entertainment, England. Meanwhile, India, Australia and New Zealand will do boring things like win),” he wrote on X

carlo entertainment,
England.
Jeet Jaisi Malted Cheese Spices, Australia, New Zealand Kar Ling . pic.twitter.com/srREBULvXl

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) February 26, 2024

There were some jitters after the departure of the two in succession, followed by the dismissals of Rajat Patidar and Ravindra Jadeja, but Shubman Gill (52 not out) and Dhruv Gurel (39 not out) took the team beyond the finish line with an unbeaten 72-run partnership.

Left-arm spinner Tom Hartley (1/64) captured Rohit's prized scalp, while Shoaib Bashir was the most successful England bowler, taking 3/79 in the second innings of an eight-wicket match.

India leads 3-1 in the series, with the last scheduled match in Dharamsala as of March 7. The team's last home loss was a 2-1 defeat to England, led by Alastair Cook, in 2012-13. Since then, India have won 39 out of 50 Tests at home.

The home side's win was a stunning downfall for the 'Bazball', which has been England's much-touted winning slogan since 2022 and now faces blanket criticism for being too rigid and lacking in depth.

Conceived after the appointment of Brendon McCullum as coach and Ben Stokes as captain, England's plan to attack no matter the circumstances has found its match in the Indians' consistent approach.

While the visitors remained stubborn with the exception of the conservative Hundred led by veteran Joe Root here, the Indians adapted and refused to get involved in the setbacks.

The opening loss in Hyderabad was expected to destabilize the home side which was already without star player Virat Kohli, who was out due to personal reasons, and injured KL KL Rahul.

On the contrary, the team was stimulated by the arrival of emerging players who seized their opportunities with both hands.

Be it batsman Sarfaraz Khan in Rajkot or wicketkeeper-batsman Dhruv Gurriel and pacer Akash Deb here, the team has gained from the infusion of new energy.

Jurel was a key factor in securing the series-clinching victory with his gutsy 90-run knock in the first innings and a powerful cameo in the second – both of which came in high-pressure situations.

With PTI input