"Thought of staying there, tiring bowlers": Akash Deep on his 66-run knock against England

New Delhi [India], August 26 (ANI): Indian pacer and nightwatchman Akash Deep reflected on his 66-run innings against England in the final Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, revealing that his goal was to stay at the crease as long as possible to tire the bowlers.

Coming in at number four in a challenging position, Akash Deep scored a career-best 66 off 94 balls, hitting 12 boundaries. His 107-run partnership with Yashasvi Jaiswal proved decisive, helping India level the five-match series 2-2.

Reflecting on his innings, Akash told ANI, "Nothing was going on. You are a part of the team. If you or the team need something, I think you should do that. That was the best time. I consider myself lucky. Whenever such a situation arises, whenever I play for a team, I feel confident and motivated. I want to do something. That day, I was thinking of doing something. I didn't think I had to score runs; I was just thinking I had to stay here for a long time. If I stay here, they will get tired and it will be easier for the other batters to come."

With this maiden Test fifty, Akash Deep joins an elite group of players, becoming the 12th to achieve a ten-fer in a match and a fifty on an England tour, alongside Hugh Trumble, Shane Warne, Imran Khan, Keith Miller, and Richard Hadlee.

Before the Oval Test, Deep's first-class average was just 11.48. He is only the fourth Indian this century to score a Test fifty at No. 4 in England, joining Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, and Shubman Gill. He also became the first Indian nightwatchman to score 50-plus runs since Amit Mishra's 84 against England at the same venue in 2011.

The 107-run partnership with Yashasvi Jaiswal on Day 3 was the 18th century-plus stand in the ongoing England tour, the most in a Test series this century, surpassing 17 in the 2003-04 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Akash Deep also played a pivotal role with the ball in India's historic victory in the second Test at Edgbaston, taking 10 wickets for 187 runs--India's best match figures in England and only the second ten-fer by an Indian in England.

Speaking about his bowling performance, Deep said, "It wasn't that I was thinking too much at that time but I was sure that it was a very important match. We had lost the first match in the series. In that match, we did not even have Jasprit Bumrah in the team. So, as a responsibility, we were thinking that we would do our best in our areas. I didn't plan to scalp five or 10 wickets; rather, I just wanted to bowl in good areas with discipline."

Deep ended the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 with 13 wickets at an average of 36.46, including his historic ten-fer, cementing his place in Indian cricket history. (ANI)

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