Nasser Hussain warns Rohit Sharma to not mess with Ben Stokes’ England

Former England skipper Nasser Hussain has fired a timely warning to Team India after their loss against England in the first Test of the ongoing five-match series. The visitors stunned their fancied hosts and registered a monumental come-from-behind win in Hyderabad on Sunday (January 28).

While England has done extremely well in Tests since Ben Stokes took charge of the team in 2022, not many were expecting them to do well in India. However, it did not take them long to prove the doubters wrong as they beat the home side by 28 runs to take the lead in the series.

India took a big lead of 190 runs in the first innings but it was not enough for them to win the game. Batting first, England were bowled out for 246 before India piled up a big total of 436 runs. In the second innings, England scored 420 runs to set India a target of 431 runs. Ollie Pope starred with the bat, scoring 196. In reply, India was all out for 202 with debutant Tom Hartley taking 7 wickets.

Nasser Hussain hails England:

Writing in his column for Sky Sports, Nasser Hussain hailed England and warned Team India, stating that the Ben Stokes-led side is not a team to be messed with. The England great was all praises for the current side’s never-say-die attitude.

“What I like about them is their stubbornness. If you doubt them, they’ll double down on it and go even more stubborn. The present regime know what they want. They’re going to stick with that and even when they’re behind, they will back the cricketers to turn it around. They have shown they are a side not to be messed with,” Nasser Hussain wrote.

Writing further, Nasser Hussain stated that the defeat is a wake-up call for Rohit Sharma and his teammates. He said that England’s win was proof of Bazball’s effectiveness in any condition. He also backed Team India to bounce back in the upcoming games.

“India will probably rue their first innings. They got 436 but actually they could have got a lot more if not for some sloppy dismissals. They will come back. They are a very fine side and history tells you it will be tough for England here. But it is a wake-up call for India as England have shown Bazball can work in these conditions,” Nasser Hussain added.

Team India will be desperate to bounce back and win the second Test to draw level in the series. The second game is scheduled to be played at the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium at Vizag from February 2.