Former all-rounder Sanjay Bangar was impressed with pacer Prasidh Krishna‘s performance on Day 2 of the ongoing fifth Test against England at The Oval.

Krishna made a comeback after sitting out the previous two Tests. However, he put the pressure aside and delivered when it mattered the most. Sanjay Bangar lauded him for the lengths he hit and the control with which he bowled in the first innings.

“A massive match for Prasidh Krishna. Coming on the back of being sidelined, the pressure would have been on him. What I liked about his initial overs is that he was trying to get the length fuller up and in that process, he used his back-of-length deliveries well. He was hitting various lengths. If you err in line against Joe Root, he is quick to lash on to anything. So not giving him that width which he is looking at, he kept on bowling in that channel. Very impressed,” the former batter said on ESPN Cricinfo. (6:41)

The 29-year-old returned figures of 4/62 as England slipped from 129/1 to 247 all out. Krishna dismissed Zak Crawley, Jamie Smith, Jamie Overton, and Gus Atkinson. He led the charge along with Mohammed Siraj as the visitors fought back after an onslaught from the English openers.

Sanjay Bangar reckoned the pacer would have known that he did not live up to the expectations in the first two Tests. However, he added that it was only a matter of time before Prasidh found his way back into the playing XI.

“I’m sure the team management would have spoken to him and tried and reasoned out why he was not preferred. But deep within he would have known that he had not lived up to his reputation. Much was expected of him. Yes at times he has been expensive but also a player with that scarce resource of someone who can hit upwards of 140 on a consistent basis. That was always going to be a plus point for Prasidh Krishna to get his place back. It was a matter of being better and trying to improve,” he stated. (8:27)

Notably, Krishna bagged five wickets in the first Test but gave away 220 runs from 35 overs across both innings. He proved to be expensive in the first innings of the second Test as well.

India will look at scoring 300 runs, reckons Sanjay Bangar

India ended the second day on 75/2 with a lead of 52 runs. Yashasvi Jaiswal was unbeaten on 51 off 49 balls. Sanjay Bangar expressed the need for all batters to perform as the wicket could get better for batting.

The former batting coach added that India should look to set England a target of 275 to chase. Notably, the hosts are without Ben Stokes. They suffered another blow as Chris Woakes did not bat in the first innings after being ruled out due to a shoulder injury.

“India would be looking at a score of 300 and any target above 275 in the last innings is going to be a challenge for England. 275 could be a magic number even though England in the past have chased down huge scores. This is a team that has Bethell at eight who is unproven and no Woakes, so tactically nine wickets in the bag,” he said. (14:47)

The visitors will aim to level the five-Test series 2-2 with a win at The Oval. After a splendid bowling display, the batters will be expected to play their part on Day 3.