England’s rookie spinner Tom Hartley was put under the pump as he was hit for a six on his first ball in Test cricket by Yashasvi Jaiswal. Hartley was given a harsh welcome to the red-ball format as he was taken to the cleaners by the left-hander.
The left-arm orthodox spinner was expensive in his opening spell but Ben Stokes continued giving him the ball. In the end, Hartley was taken for 131 runs in the 25 overs he bowled in the first innings.
However, Hartley was able to stand tall to his captain’s faith in the second innings as he registered figures of 7-62 in the second innings. Hartley registered fourth-best figures by a visiting bowler in India as a debutant.
The greenhorn spinner revealed how he bounced back in the second innings and tried to keep it simple.
Tom Hartley said as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo, “He’s not the first, and he won’t be the last! As a spinner, people are going to come after you. I’m fine with it if people want to come after me. I sort of have to go into a different mind-set. You look back at the ball and you think it wasn’t a bad ball. If that’s the way they want to play, you’ve just got to play with it.”
“When you’re playing for the first time you just run up that bit quick. And you think, well, just slow things down, let your action do the work. When I run in quick, I just tend to lose my action a bit. I just slowed it down and kept it simple, and it seemed to work,” he said.
Hartley added that head coach Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes add so much life to the team. Stokes continued to back Hartley in the first innings despite him being expensive.
“I’ve watched a bit, and they’ve done some rogue things. That’s just the way they are, and after being in this Test match, I’m all aboard. Even before, I was happy with it, I was all in anyway. They’re just such a great combo and they bring so much confidence and life to this team,” Hartley said.
The left-arm orthodox spinner added he is ready to take a big role for the team.
“Coming out here, I was just looking to get a game or a couple of games. I might have a big role, but I’m more than ready for that. I want more of it,” he concluded.
The second Test match between India and England will be played at Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam from 2nd February.
