Wasim Jaffer, a former cricketer for India, made a playful jab at Kevin Pietersen for his sanguinity on England’s performance in the opening Test match against India in Hyderabad.
Pietersen, who was known for his honest forecasts, had predicted that England would collect a huge amount of runs and was certain that the team batting first would reach 450 on the first day of the Test and declare. “450/9 England batsman declared today?” Pieterson made a post before the first game of the series.
England bat. 450/9 declared today? #INDvENG
— Kevin Pietersen🦏 (@KP24) January 25, 2024
But Pietersen swiftly changed his mind, forecasting a potential two-day finish with a frustrated, “Bloody Hell!!!” as the Indian spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin established their groove. Perhaps a two-day affair!” post.
Bloody hell!!!! Might be a two day game! #INDvsENG
— Kevin Pietersen🦏 (@KP24) January 25, 2024
On January 25, the game took place at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. England’s opening pair, Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley, had a good start but were eventually undone by the spin duo’s skill. England collapsed from a strong start to 246 all-out, with Ben Stokes top-scoring (70 off 88), thanks to the breakthroughs of Ashwin and Jadeja.
of typical clever Wasim Jaffer fashion, he made fun of Pietersen’s abrupt shift of perspective by turning his divergent predictions into a meme.
Jaffer tagged Indian cricketer Dinesh Karthik, giving the conversation a lighthearted edge and suggesting that Karthik would interpret the meme for Pietersen.
Karthik played along and replied with a playful tweet that said, “Am I right @KP24? Some things don’t need explanations 😋.”
Some things don’t need explanations 😋
Am I right @KP24? https://t.co/ut5q7LjXwx— DK (@DineshKarthik) January 25, 2024
India is in a commanding position in Hyderabad.
India had a great start to the match, dismissing England for 246 and finishing the first day at 119 for one. Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who were respectively 76 and 14 years old, held the crease. But thanks to Joe Root and Tom Hartley’s devious spin combination, both overnight hitters made it back to the pavilion early on Day 2. Jaiswal was taken care of by Root, and Hartley outwitted Gill. Despite the losses in the most recent exchanges, India is still seeking to build on their strong foundation as the game is still perfectly balanced.