'Never Mess With Indians': Cricketers and Fans React as Kohli's Team India Bully England at Lord's
07:55 GMT 17.08.2021 (Updated: 20:02 GMT 19.10.2022)
© AFP 2023 / GLYN KIRK
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India's sensational 151-run victory over England in the second Test of the ongoing five-match series is only their third triumph at Lord's, the home of the sport also widely known as the "Mecca of cricket". The South Asian country's previous two wins at the iconic venue came in 1986 and 2014.
People on Twitter erupted in joy as Indian captain Virat Kohli and his men bullied the home team England into submission at the Lord's cricket ground on Monday, registering a sensational victory.
Cricket lovers turned ecstatic as the match was won in the dying moments of the second day of the five-day Test match.
— OneCricket (@OneCricketApp) August 16, 2021
— BCCI (@BCCI) August 17, 2021
As soon as Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj pegged back James Anderson's off stump to seal the deal in India's favour, wishes began to pour in on social media for the team, with cricketers and fans from around the world, lavishing rich praise on Virat and his team.
While ex-cricketers, including the legendary Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag hailed the visitors for their brilliant show, it was a tweet from former India opener Wasim Jaffer that summed up England's defeat as he said, "never mess with Indians after 15th August".
On the other hand, Player of the Match KL Rahul called it "a win for the ages", while ODI and T20 specialist Shikhar Dhawan and BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly lauded their never-say-die attitude and fighting spirit.
Tributes and praise also poured in from fans, who labelled Kohli's squad the "greatest Indian team ever".
Meanwhile, former England captain Michael Vaughan was scathing in his attack of Joe Root and his boys, calling the home team's tactics "bizarre".
Senior English fast bowler Stuart Broad, who missed the game due to an injury, though, didn't criticise his team for the loss, instead choosing to congratulate India on a "special win".
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 16, 2021
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) August 16, 2021
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) August 17, 2021
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) August 16, 2021
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) August 16, 2021
— K L Rahul (@klrahul11) August 16, 2021
— Jasprit Bumrah (@Jaspritbumrah93) August 16, 2021
— Sourav Ganguly (@SGanguly99) August 16, 2021
— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) August 16, 2021
— Stuart Broad (@StuartBroad8) August 16, 2021
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) August 16, 2021
— Lovepreet Singh (@lovekamboj377) August 16, 2021
— Thyview (@Thyview) August 16, 2021
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) August 16, 2021
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) August 16, 2021
— Rohit Sharma (@ImRo45) August 16, 2021
Kohli and his team's historic victory at Lord's came in style, in what the nation's next-gen calls the "New India" manner. It had both swagger and the shrewdness to hit back at the opposition, as the Indians employed tit-for-tat tactics to not only rile them up, but also exert more and more pressure on them.
The Indian team's response came after the English squad tried to bully Jasprit Bumrah with an array of bouncers in the first session of the day, with the hosts having an upper hand in the game.
Tempers flared up in the 91st over of India's second innings after words were exchanged between Bumrah and England wicketkeeper Jos Buttler. When both players got in each other's face, umpire Michael Gough intervened just in time to separate the pair.
But tensions continued to escalate as every boundary hit by both Bumrah and Mohammed Shami, who were involved in a match winning 89-run unbroken ninth wicket partnership, was cheered by the entire Indian team from their balcony.
Cameras showed Kohli and his teammates using obscenities and juicy Hindi epithets, including gestures towards the England players from the balcony while being seen in a series of animated discussions.
In the end, England's ploy to intimidate and bully the Indians failed. Instead, it was Virat and his teammates who succeeded in bullying them to such an extent that the English batting line up capitulated in under 60 overs in the fourth innings.
It was Bumrah and Shami, who gave India a near perfect start, sending back both the English openers, Rory Burns and Dom Sibley for nought.
While Root waged a brief battle, once Bumrah got him out for 33 with a beautiful outswinger in the slips, Kohli and his men looked in control as the score read 67/5 with plenty of overs still to go.
Wickets kept on falling at regular intervals before a 30-run stand between Ollie Robinson and Buttler gave the home team some hope. But those hopes were quickly dashed as Siraj knocked them off in two successive overs before ending Anderson's three ball stay at the crease to register India's third win at the Lord's ground.
After Monday's match, it looked as if India hadn't only conquered the sport's Mecca, but also won the war-of-words between the two sides, which began on Day 4 when Anderson and Kohli were engaged in a heated verbal duel on the pitch.
