IND vs ENG 2024: His pace was pedestrian – Michael Atherton disappointed with Ollie Robinson’s performance

Former England skipper Michael Atherton was disappointed with Ollie Robinson’s performance in the fourth Test match against India at Ranchi, which the visitors lost by five wickets. Atherton said Robinson’s pace was pedestrian as he bowled below 130kmph and failed to trouble any Indian batter.

Robinson, who was left on the sidelines in the first three Test matches, replaced Mark Wood in the final XI. However, the right-arm pacer went wicketless through the whole game and failed to create any impact.

Robinson bowled 13 overs and conceded 54 runs in the first innings whereas he was not given the ball by Ben Stokes in the second essay as England skipper backed his spinners from the get-go. However, the 30-year-old from Kent scored 58 runs in the first innings and added a crucial alliance of 102 runs with Joe Root.

The lanky pacer has a good record against India but failed to impress in his first Test on Indian soil. Furthermore, Robinson dropped Dhruv Jurel’s catch in the first innings when the wicket-keeper batter was on 59 and he went on to score 90 runs.

“Ollie Robinson, I was really disappointed with him in this game. I felt that he bowled, his pace was pedestrian, and he was quite down on pace. Obviously scored that half-century, but dropped a catch. He was not called upon by Stokes on the last day and he looked like a player who had been out of cricket for seven months. He looks like a bowler who needs a good run of game time now, not necessarily with England either,” Atherton said on Sky Cricket Podcast.

While Robinson went wicketless, England’s veteran James Anderson returned with two wickets in the first innings.

The fifth and final Test match will be played at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala from March 7.