The second Test match between England and India is being hosted at Edgbaston. Team India’s batting under the captaincy of Shubman Gill gave a brilliant show and amassed a huge score of 587 runs in the first innings. Then the top order of England crumbled against the aggressive pace of Akashdeep and Mohammed Siraj. Just when India would have looked to impose the follow-on, Jamie Smith walked onto the crease and completely turned the game on its head. Batting in a T20 fashion in a Test match, he hit a scintillating century, with 23 runs coming off one over of Prasidh Krishna.
Fastest Test Centuries for England (by balls faced):
- 76 balls – Gilbert Jessop vs Australia, The Oval, 1902
- 77 balls – Jonny Bairstow vs New Zealand, Trent Bridge, 2022
- 80 balls – Harry Brook vs Pakistan, Rawalpindi, 2022
- 80 balls – Jamie Smith vs India, Edgbaston, 2025 *
- 85 balls – Ben Stokes vs New Zealand, Lord’s, 2015
Jamie Smith’s Explosive Approach
On the second day of the match, when Team India was busy celebrating two consecutive wickets, the party was spoiled by Jamie Smith. The very moment he stepped onto the crease, he started punishing the Indian bowlers — starting with Prasidh Krishna. Already on the receiving end for his economy rate in the first match, Krishna gave away 61 runs in 8 overs in the first innings of this match as well.
Impressive In The First Test As Well
Jamie Smith had given indications of his caliber in the first Test of the series too. He scored 40 runs in the first innings and was unbeaten on 44 in the second one. His brief Test career of 11 matches has been quite impressive to date. In 18 innings, he has played 725 runs at an average of 45.31.
