Lessons for Lord’s: how England can build on victory over India

England need their captain in the slip cordon and to keep calm against Virat Kohli after a win that has heightened the prospect of a thrilling series.

The captain in the cordon can restore former aura

Remember when every nick turned to gold? Jimmy Anderson does, as he reflected fondly at stumps after day three, speaking of a time when England went to the top of the world at the start of this decade. Then, he explained, there was a settled cordon of experienced and established internationals. At Birmingham it was anything but with Dawid Malan and Keaton Jennings at second and third, the duo who were least certain of their spots in the XI. Malan’s redemption came on the final morning, pouching a vital chance with a far higher degree of difficulty than the three he shelled – not least Virat Kohli on 21 in the first innings, a blunder that cost the hosts 128 runs. With the Middlesex captain dropped himself for Lord’s, the answer surely now sits with Joe Root. A fine slipper, the England captain took this summer to stationing himself closer to the bowlers. Shifting back to the business end behind the bat, next to Alastair Cook no less, is the easiest way to rediscover that aura.

Irreplaceable Stokes will be missed

Another man with a typically faultless pair of hands is Ben Stokes, but he will not be in the XI let alone the cordon when the caravan moves to HQ on Thursday. Instead the all-rounder must appear in a Bristol court. When the second‑innings destroyer spoke following his four for 41 he looked drained and sounded emotional. How is he replaced? In practical terms, by Chris Woakes who returns to the squad. In reality, Stokes cannot be replaced. We saw that much during the Ashes.

Rashid confounds sceptics but tougher Test awaits

When Ed Smith explained the process behind Adil Rashid’s unorthodox Test recall, he emphasised it was a unanimous decision from a group that included Root. If that was so, many pondered, why was he not giving his leggie more of an opportunity? He must not trust his Yorkshire teammate, the narrative continued. It was quite reductive given how wonderfully England’s seamers performed (and mitigated later by Rashid’s introduction on Saturday) but that’s showbiz. If England stick with the winning formula and the same balance of bowlers in the second Test, on a Lord’s surface bound to be less helpful to the wobbly seam brigade, Rashid’s workload can be expected to increase dramatically. Despite having done little wrong in Edgbaston, it is the week coming up that will determine if he is up to the red-ball task.

Ashwin will be used early in tantalising personal duels

  There are not many batsmen who would dispute that Ravi Ashwin is the best spin bowler in the world, his supremacy underlined by a pair of unplayable deliveries he sent down to remove Alastair Cook in both innings at Edgbaston. With both, the Indian tweaker found enough flight then dip to compel the left-hander forward before generating the biting turn required to beat the edge with accuracy to clip the off stump. Dreamy stuff. The joy of a five‑Test series is that it provides enough rounds for heavyweight contests to evolve. Now Kohli will introduce Ashwin earlier than usual throughout the summer. How Cook responds to this very different kind of new‑ball challenge will dictate if he can influence another series between these nations.

Don’t panic at the feet of King Kohli

Rising to the top of the Test rankings after his masterful performance in the Edgbaston Test, Virat Kohli confirmed he is the best (available) batsman in the game. That, however, does not diminish the way in which England’s bowlers went about it. They kept their cool and made Kohli scrap for long periods, even if the India captain did finish with 200 runs in the match. The worst thing England could do now is fixate on his presence. There was a bit of that in the way they approached Steve Smith during the winter Ashes series and it rarely paid off.