Liam Dawson impresses on debut

England debutant, Liam Dawson, scored an unbeaten 66 from 148 balls, the highest score by an England debutant batting at No. 8, to guide his side to a sizeable 477-run first innings total in the fifth Test in Chennai on Saturday.

Dawson came to the crease with his side, on 300 for 6, in danger of letting the advantage slip. Centurion Moeen Ali's departure eight-overs later gave India hope of seizing the advantage by restricting the visitors to a below-par score.

Dawson and his new partner Rashid Ali though joined forces and ended any hope of India dictating terms. The duo began cautiously before lunch, scoring just 31 runs in 15.2 overs. India's seamers, and Ishant Sharma in particular, had tested Dawson's resolve early by bouncing him and rattling his helmet.

The right-hander though refused to budge and quickly moved to 27. He clobbered three fours, which included a flick off Umesh Yadav, a square-cut off R Ashwin, and a cover drive, against the turn, off an Amit Mishra googly, to make his attacking intentions clear. He reached his 50 from 121 deliveries.

The Dawson-Rashid combine added 108 runs for the eighth wicket from 41.3 overs they were together. Rashid finally departed after adding an impressive 60 from 155 balls. England's tail wagged as the their last four batsmen added 157 all-important runs that handed them a total that would stretch India's in form batting unit.

The Dawson-Rashid partnership was the third highest eighth-wicket stand by visiting teams in Tests in India. Keith Boyce and Viv Richards stand of 124 in Delhi in 1974 is the highest, while Imran Khan and Wasim Akram's 112 in Chennai in 1986-87 is the next best.