ENG vs IND: 1st Test – Talking points from rain-curtailed third day’s play
Rain played spoilsport once again as only a few overs were possible after the tea break. An hour was also lost in the morning due to rain. However, the day would be clearly India’s as they made a move on from their overnight score of 125 for 4. They ended their first innings on 278, getting a 95-run lead. At stumps on day three, England was on 25 for 0, still trailing by 70 runs. Here are the talking points of the third day’s play:
5) KL Rahul’s comeback knock
After making a comeback to the Test side after two years, KL Rahul made the most of the opportunity given to him. The Karnataka player managed to get his 12th Test fifty yesterday, his first score of 50 plus since 2018. On day three, when India needed someone to hold one end and form partnerships, Rahul was happy to step up and make 84 runs from 214 balls, which could well turn out to be a match-defining one.
4) Ravindra Jadeja proves himself at no. 7 yet again
When Jadeja walked out to bat, India desperately needed a partnership as they were five wickets down with still 38 runs behind. The Saurashtra man soaked up the pressure and managed to get his 16th Test fifty. When Rahul got out and England managed to get Shardul Thakur quickly, Jadeja started attacking which put England on the backfoot. His contribution of 56 runs from 86 balls gave India the much-needed lead.
3) India’s tail wags
Ahead of the series, there was lots of talk about how India’s tail has regularly failed to add valuable runs down the order. Thakur was brought in with batting capabilities so that the tail doesn’t look too long. But boy, have India’s tailenders managed to impress in round 1 of the five-match Test series. India’s lead would have been much less than 95 runs had those contributions down the order not come from Mohammad Shami (13 runs), Jasprit Bumrah (28 runs) and Mohammad Siraj (7 runs).
2) Robinson makes a resounding comeback after the ban
After making an impressive debut against New Zealand in early June at the Lord’s, Robinson had to miss some matches due to the entire old tweets row. He was left out from the England side. But, on his comeback, Robinson once again showed why he is an impressive youngster. With Stuart Broad and Sam Curran going little wayward, Robinson stepped up with James Anderson to rattle India’s hopes of getting a huge lead. He ended with figures of 5 for 85.
1) James Anderson surpasses Anil Kumble
James Anderson was exceptional during the second day’s play when he got rid of Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli on back to back balls. On day three, he went past Kumble’s tally of 619 wickets in Tests to become the third-highest wicket-taker in history. He ended up picking up crucial wickets of Rahul and Thakur to finish with figures of four for 54. He now has 621 wickets.
