LONDON: When B Sai Sudharsan got out on Day 2 of the fifth Test here at the Oval, pacer Akash Deep made his way to the ground in place of skipper Shubman Gill. At least 20 minutes of the extended play was remaining when the pacer joined opener Yashasvi Jaiswal in the middle. He did the same at the Lord's Test in the fag end of Day 4 but could not last long as Ben Stokes cleaned him up.
With the on-field umpires calling off the day's play four balls later due to bad light, Akash Deep went back to pavilion unbeaten unlike the third Test and it also gave him an opportunity to contribute to the team's cause especially after a not-so-good show with the ball in England's first innings.
Seemingly a designated nightwatchman for this new-look India, the Bengal pacer blunted England's pace attack hitting 12 fours on his way to a 94-ball 66. He also added 107 runs with Jaiswal for the third wicket, almost depriving the hosts of any success in the morning session. England's horror show in the field also helped Akash Deep to reach his maiden Test fifty as Zak Crawley dropped him at the slip cordon in the 26th over bowled by Josh Tongue. He also survived a close LBW call. Skipper Ollie Pope reviewed it but the appeal was overturned due to the umpire's call.
With luck seeming to be by his side, Akash Deep played quite a few shots including an uppercut against Atkinson for a four. He also completed his fifty with a four highlighting the confidence he has gained during his stay at the crease. Incidentally, it was at the same venue only where another nightwatchman from India, Amit Mishra, scored 84 against the hosts in 2011. Fittingly enough, Akash Deep became the first nightwatchman from the country to score a 50-plus score since Mishra's knock 14 years ago.
Former Australia pacer Jason Gillespie holds the record for the most runs by a nightwatchman for his 201 not out against Bangladesh in Chittagong in 2006. For India, former wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani holds the record scoring an unbeaten 101 against Australia in Mumbai in 1979.
Sent ahead of a regular batter, a nightwatchman's priority is to protect the specialist batter in the dying minutes of the game. As the play was called off earlier than scheduled, Akash Deep was spared of that responsibility on the second day but his responsibility was far from over. As the day began with it being a sunny day, his next job was to score a few quick runs and wear down the new ball as well as the England pacers. He did exactly the same and in the process also shielded Jaiswal for quite some time as initially it was him who faced the maximum deliveries.
The 28-year-old right-hand batter also had a fifty in first-class cricket to his credit when he scored an 18-ball half-century against Jharkhand for Bengal during the 2021-22 Ranji Trophy quarterfinal. In December last year, Akash Deep had forged a crucial 47-run partnership with Jasprit Bumrah for the last wicket saving India from the follow-on. Given his decent exploits with bat, the team management might have assigned him the responsibility.
Before him, quite a few pacers including Javagal Srinath and Ishant Sharma did the job for India. Left-arm spinner Murali Kartik did it in Bangladesh scoring 43 when sent in at No 2 in 2000 during a one-off Test. All-rounder Irfan Pathan also contributed 46 runs to the team's total in the second innings against Australia in Perth in 2008. Pathan was promoted to No 2 in the batting order after India lost Wasim Jaffer a few overs before the end of the day's play. It helped India set a good target and win the match by 72 runs.
Only time can tell whether Akash Deep's innings would help India win the match like Irfan but he surely has tilted the match in the team's favour with his brilliant knock as a nightwatchman
