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Playing his first Test in England, fast bowler Akash Deep turned out to be a star for India as he took a six-wicket haul on day 5 of the second Test against England at Edgbaston, Birmingham. This was Akash’s first five-wicket haul in Test cricket which also helped India to get their first-ever Test win in Birmingham and also level the five- match Test series by 1-1. India defeated the hosts by a mammoth margin of 336 runs and made a great comeback after losing the first Test match in Leeds.
Starting the day with 72/3 while chasing a mammoth target of 608 runs on the final day, England went on to lose quick wickets of Ollie Pope and Harry Brook with Akash Deep dismissing both of them as the hosts were reduced to 83/5. After that, skipper Ben Stokes and Jamie Smith put up a partnership of 70 runs for the sixth wicket. Stokes got out after scoring 33(73) runs with six boundaries.
Akash Deep dismisses Jamie Smith to complete 5-fer, gets emotional after reaching the milestone
After the partnership was broken India got closer to the win. However Jamie Smith was still standing at the crease as England’s last hope. He also smashed a few boundaries before Akash Deep finally ended his innings to complete his maiden fifer in Test cricket. In an attempt to hit another big shot, Smith ended up giving a catch to Washington Sundar who standing at deep backward square. After completing the fifer, Akash Deep jumped in joy and also got a bit emotional upon achieving the milestone.
Coming as a replacement for Jasprit Bumrah in the second Test, Akash Deep turned out to be a star with the ball for India with a four–wicket haul in the first innings and a six-wicket haul in the second innings. He registered the figures of 6/99 as England were bowled out for 271 runs with India winning by a huge margin of 336 runs.
