Akash Deep frustrated England with the bat and scripted history after scoring his maiden Test half-century on Day 3 of the fifth Test of the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy at The Oval on Saturday.Sent in as a nightwatchman late on day two, Akash Deep resumed his innings at the score of 4 on day three and played an extraordinary knock in the first session, scoring 66 off 94 balls with the help of 12 boundaries. Akash Deep was eventually dismissed by Jamie Overton towards the end of the first session with a short ball.
Akash Deep’s 66 is the second-highest score by an Indian nightwatchman in Test cricket. Notably, the highest score by an Indian nightwatchman is Amit Mishra’s 84 against England, which the leg-spinner hit at the same venue in 2011.
Highest Scores By Indian Nightwatchmen In Test Cricket
- 84 – Amit Mishra vs England, Oval, 2011
- 66 – Akash Deep vs England, Oval, 2025
- 54 – Chetan Sharma vs Australia, Adelaide, 1985
- 50 – Amit Mishra vs Bangladesh – Chattogram, 2010
After his fantastic half-century, Akash Deep joined legendary Shane Warne in an elite list. The 28-year-old became only the second man after Shane Warne this century to score a fifty and take a 10-wicket haul in England as an opposition player. Former Australia spinner Warne achieved this rare feat in 2005. Interestingly, there are only five instances of an Asian player achieving this double in a SENA country.
Asian Players To Score 50 And Take 10-Wicket Haul In A SENA SeriesÂ
- Akash Deep, IND tour of ENG, 2025
- Chaminda Vaas, SL tour of NZ, 1994/95
- Wasim Akram, PAK tour of AUS, 1989/90
- Imran Khan, PAK tour of ENG, 1987
- Intikhab Alam, PAK tour of ENG, 1972/73
Akash Deep maiden half century’s highlights morning session for India on Day 3
Akash Deep’s maiden Test fifty capped a frustrating morning for England, who waited nearly the entire session to strike on a pitch where the ball’s still doing plenty. India added 114 runs to their overnight total, stretching their lead to 166 and tightening their hold on the fifth and final Test.
It was Jamie Overton who eventually broke through with a leading edge that carried to point, but not before Akash Deep had delivered a standout performance. So assured was the nightwatch batter that Yashasvi Jaiswal, batting on 85 at Lunch on Day 3, played second fiddle through the session as Akash Deep raised three successive milestones: his highest Test score, a maiden international fifty off 70 balls, and then his best-ever first-class score.
He also became the first Indian nightwatch to score a fifty since Amit Mishra’s 84 at the same venue against the same opponent back in 2011. The batter got going with a heave against Jacob Bethell, the left-arm spinner who bowled the first over of the day in a stopgap move as the seamers changed ends, and that stroke seemed to set the tone, both for him and for India. He didn’t shy away from taking on pace either, ausing the long handle against both Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue with confidence.
Dinesh Karthik is in all praise of Akash Deep’s valiant 66 on Day 3 morning
Former wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik praised Akash Deep’s impressive knock of 66 during day three of the ongoing fifth Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy Test, highlighting that his performance has put the visitors in a very strong position.
In the morning session, with the pitch flattening out, nightwatchman Akash Deep was dropped on 21 and went on to score his maiden Test half-century, hitting 12 boundaries before Jamie Overton dismissed him for 66. By then, Akash Deep had exceeded expectations of his nightwatchman duties, contributing significantly with a 107-run partnership with Jaiswal. Dinesh Karthik while praising the exemplary batting skills shown by the batter said :
“They couldn’t have asked anything more from him. All they wanted him to do was probably just get past last night, which he did quite comfortably. But today, he came out there, played wonderfully well, gave a chance early. When you put down chances, that’s what happens. That’s the last thing you want, as it is, you’re a depleted bowling attack.”
“Then when you put down simple ones, it gets even tougher. He got lucky as well. A couple of the balls that he ended up edging just went in the gap in the slip cordon. But all in all, I think it is a wonderful effort. You pretty much can assess and understand the mindset of a team, depending on how your tailenders are playing.”
“I think Michael Atherton put it nicely, saying that if you have 9-10-11 fighting it out there for you, like what Siraj and Bumrah did at Lord’s, those kind of small moments actually spur you on as a team.”
“Akash Deep’s effort as a batter, and you could see the applause that he got when he went back in, means so much to the team. It’s because what he’s done is actually take India to a very strong position. From here on, you’d expect the batters to bat deep and take India to a very strong and very good place,” Dinesh Karthik was quoted as saying on Sky Sports’ broadcast during lunch break.
Dinesh Karthik also believes  the current series is one of India’s best tours of England in recent times.
 “I think it is one of the best series India have had in England, because of how competitive they have been from day one.
“If you just look at the number of sessions India have won, the fact they are still lagging behind 2-1 shows how hard it is to beat England at home. It is a young team that is going to take over India and it’s Test cricket for the next 10 years.” he concluded.
After his impressive batting, Akash Deep has a golden opportunity to make a noticeable impact with the ball during England’s second innings of the ongoing fifth Test at Lord’s.
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