Following Ben Duckett's explosive 149, which helped England defeat a record 371-run target in the Headingley Test, former England fast bowler Steve Harmison delivered a scathing critique of India's bowling and fielding strategy. Harmison didn't hesitate to highlight how disorganized Shubman Gill's team seemed during Duckett's stay, saying they never truly thought they could dismiss the left-hander.

"Ben Duckett played wonderfully well." Harmison told ESPNcricinfo, “He thought he was going to play a match-winning knock. He (Duckett) thought he was going to score runs. As usual, he had a lot of good intentions. I'm not sure if India thought they would be able to bring him out. In my opinion, India's strategy was flawed. I don't believe they bowled the proper lengths and lines to him. And he took advantage of it.

Duckett's innings set the stage for what would become England's second-most successful chase in Test history. However, Harmison believed that India just failed to meet the challenge.

"They had no response." They were unable to prevent him from scoring. They were completely adrift and had no idea how to use their skills, let alone what their plan was. They weren't even able to prevent singles in the field. Harmison stated frankly, "India's bowlers were bowling good balls, but England were getting singles."

The best player in the game

The left-hander rightly earned the title of Player of the Match and gave credit to England's clarity of mind during the morning session.

"It was essential during that time [first session] that Zak and I made it through without losing any wickets," Duckett stated.

"This morning, it was very obvious to us. We didn't give things too much thought because, at our regular pace, we would have likely gotten the total for the entire day. Without a doubt, we had to survive Jasprit's initial spell and that new ball, and from there on, we were simply playing our natural games.

India did strike back in the second session with four wickets, but Joe Root (53*) and wicketkeeper-batter Jamie Smith (44*) made sure there were no late hiccups, putting up a 71-run partnership to secure a remarkable five-wicket victory. At Edgbaston, the second Test gets underway on July 2.

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