Stokes conjures England magic to halt India and put third Test on knife-edge

0
It has been a tough old series for England’s bowlers. As well as wrestling with docile pitches and doughy Dukes balls in a lengthy heatwave, they have come up against an India batting lineup that is rich with talent and seriously gutsy with it. The upshot has been perspiration outstripping inspiration for long passages of play.

Not that those two elements are mutually exclusive and in Ben Stokes, England have a cricketer who thrives on delivering both. On a gripping third day of this third Test, as India were bowled out for 387 in 119.2 overs to leave the scores level on first innings, the hosts were thankful for their captain’s ability to conjure something from nothing. At stumps, on two for no loss, England had just about returned to the box seat because of it.

The first was a viral-worthy run-out when a wicketless morning was within India’s grasp, the tourists having added 103 runs to their overnight 145 for three in ominous fashion. Possibly driven to get KL Rahul on strike and thus to his century before the break, Rishabh Pant dead-batted an intended single but briefly hesitated after setting off, with Stokes swooping in from cover to hit the bullseye in one fluid motion.

What made Pant’s removal all the more remarkable was that Stokes was fresh – or rather anything but fresh – from a five-over burst of bouncers in 30C heat, hitting 90mph on the speed gun through sheer heft. Given his body was doubtless barking at him, and his mind whirring as a result, it was a superb display of awareness and athleticism.

View image in fullscreen Rishabh Pant is run out by Ben Stokes. Photograph: Alex Davidson/Getty Images

View image in fullscreen The England captain is delighted at breaking England’s wicket drought in the last over before lunch. Photograph: Andy Kearns/Getty Images

The second came after tea with the second new ball. Against the run of play, Stokes broke a troubling sixth-wicket stand of 72 runs between Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy when he extracted some extra lift from the surface and the latter edged behind. Stokes had already clanged Reddy on the helmet and it took the bowling coach Tim Southee rushing down from the pavilion to call time on a seven-over spell.

But for those two moments from Stokes, and Shoaib Bashir outfoxing Rahul to shut down a wonderfully round 100 from 177 balls, India might well have batted England out of this Test match. As it is, after an evening session in which Stokes’s men fought back with character to claim five wickets for 71 runs – only the eighth time in Test history that first innings scores have been level – a straight shootout has now bubbled up.

How the hosts fare with the bat on day four will probably decide it and going by Jasprit Bumrah’s mood at the close, it will not be straightforward. Bumrah could only send down a single over before the clock ticked past 6.30pm, Zak Crawley indulging in some Oscar-worthy time-wasting that sparked a heated exchange of words. Once again, in a Test match afflicted by constant stoppages, 10 overs disappeared into the ether.

India will have regrets beyond failing to get in a second over late on. The tourists had been building well before Pant’s brain-fade on 74, with Rahul’s 10th Test century a masterclass in precision and style. The wiry right-hander appears almost born to bat in England, such is his diligence outside off stump and ability to caress the ball square. In the end he was undone by some exquisite dip from Bashir and edged to slip.

skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to The Spin Free weekly newsletter Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week’s action Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion

Thereafter, and despite at least three more flirtations with run-outs, India owed plenty to their premier all-rounder. Supported by Reddy, and overcoming some serious heat from Jofra Archer, Jadeja compiled 72 from 131 balls that again brought out his flamboyant sword celebration. He also forced Bashir off the field for the rest of the day when he slammed a tough chance back to the off-spinner and damaged his left little finger.

But having turned 254 for five at the fall of Rahul into 376 for six, Jadeja then fell to a leg-side strangle off Chris Woakes — the first of four wickets to fall for 11 runs that cast minds back to India’s ruinous tail-end collapses at Headingley. Woakes finished with his figures buffed up to read three for 84 from 27 overs, his day having previously been something of a struggle in which he was down on pace and short on luck.

Archer added a second to his emotional first wicket 24 hours earlier and 23.2 overs in total was another boxed-ticked on his comeback. Going back to the well after a day’s play is arguably his biggest challenge after that four-year absence from Test cricket. Here he sent a four-over burst after lunch that, at an average speed of 90.3mph, eclipsed even his famous 2019 duel with Steve Smith at Lord’s by way of pace.

This augurs well for Archer’s ongoing role in an attack that has found itself toiling in this series. Stokes, despite allaying concerns over that groin niggle on the opening day, cannot be relied on to keep producing the magic when the chips are down.

Click here to read article

Related Articles