Ind vs Eng, 2nd Test: Rohit, Rahane hold fort to settle hosts’ nerves

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], February 13 (ANI): Rohit Sharma’s unbeaten century and Ajinkya Rahane’s composure helped India revived their innings and gain an upper hand in the second session on day one of the ongoing second Test against England here at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday.
At the tea break, India’s score reads 189/3 with Rohit and Rahane currently unbeaten on 132 and 36 respectively. The second session saw 83 runs being scored from 28 overs. Rahane and Rohit have extended their partnership to 103 runs.
Resuming the second session at 106/3, Rahane and Rohit saw off the first hour with ease, and the duo accumulated runs at a good pace. The first hour also saw Rohit bringing up his century and the hopes of posting a big score relied heavily on the right-hander.
Both the batters did not relent in their approach and they were quick to capitalise on the loose balls being dished out by the England bowlers. In the end, both Rohit and Rahane ensured that the hosts did not lose a single wicket in the second session of the day and the side had seven wickets intact going into the third and final session on day one.
Earlier, Rohit scored a quickfire half-century but India lost crucial wickets of Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Virat Kohli as England gained an upper hand in the first session. At the lunch break, India’s score read 106/3 with Rohit and Ajinkya Rahane unbeaten on 80 and 5 respectively. The first session saw 106 runs being scored from 26 overs.
Skipper Kohli had won the toss and he opted to bat first. The hosts made three changes to their lineup as they brought in Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj in place of Shahbaz Nadeem, Washington Sundar, and Jasprit Bumrah. On the other hand, England made four changes as the side brought in Moeen Ali, Stuart Broad, Olly Stone, and Ben Foakes in place of Dominic Bess, Jofra Archer, James Anderson, and Jos Buttler.
Brief Scores: India 189/3 (Rohit Sharma 132*, Ajinkya Rahane 36*, Olly Stone 1-25). (ANI)