Hello and welcome to Sportstar's coverage of Day 3 of the second Test between India and England as action unfolds at Lord's Cricket Ground, London.
What a day of Test cricket! Joe Root, take a bow. A day English and cricket fans can savour. Joe Root's purple patch rose to a whole new level as he continued to milk the Indian bowlers all over the park. Kohli's plain leadership in the first two sessions - the field placements were hardly imaginative - cost India's hopes of maintaining the lead dearly. There was nothing in it for the seamers for quite a while and coupled with a negative body language, helped Root cash in once again. The skipper received some able support this time with the likes of Bairstow and Ali chipping in but largely remained the cynosure of the home side.
India's late return was remarkable enough as Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Siraj shunned the lower-order to low scores and helped India to maintain a line within striking distance ahead of day four. England's 27-run lead would be inconsequential for both sides but Root would be content with the fact that he's pushed India to the edge before attempting to script another win at Lord's. Big day up ahead, folks! Join us tomorrow for some more riveting action!
ENG 391 all out in 128 overs: STUMPS. Shami cleans the stumps off the final ball! Anderson is knocked off and England finishes with a 27-run lead. Root, the champ, he remains stranded on 180 and Kohli seems to be delighted that the misery has come to an end at the stoke of stumps.
Shami in for the last over of day 3
ENG 389/9 in 127 overs: Top draw stuff from Joe! Siraj steams in and Root hangs low and slays a fine reverse sweep for four. He capitalises further with a full-bloodied slog that sails past the square leg fielder for another boundary. Piling on the misery for India.
ENG 380/9 in 126 overs: Bumrah hits flush on Anderson's helmet and we have a brief delay. Bumrah continues with a bouncer barrage! Anderson cops a couple of sharp blows but hangs on! Bumrah eventually finishes his over with another full delivery after bowling two more no balls, four in the over! Sloppy from the slingman.
ENG 376/9 in 125 overs: Bumrah to Root. OUT! Run out at the non-striker's end as Wood attempts to steal the second. He gambles against Jadeja's arm and runs for the second. Root stays back at the non-striker's and beats Wood to the crease and he has to sacrifice his wicket. India nearly there. Well, not yet. Root completes the over with another boundary to midwicket. Mark Wood run out (Jadeja/†Pant) 5 (23b)
ENG 369/8 in 124 overs: Bumrah's no-ball woes continue. Two in the over. Root rocks forward and continues to dislodge the searing deliveries off the pitch and he's pretty adamant to bide as much time as possible.
Bumrah into the attack
ENG 366/8 in 123 overs: England into the lead as Root's wristy flick races to the midwicket fence. Siraj goes a tad too much to the on-side and pays the price. The hard toil of the Indian openers have been undone after a classic Root fightback.
Root's Test average has crossed 50!
ENG 362/8 in 122 overs: Shami continues to go wide off the crease to Wood who presents a dead bat. Two runs on the board and England trails by two runs now. Root's done what he'd set out to do today.
ENG 360/8 in 121 overs: Root survives by the barest margin! Siraj's nip-backer zips past his blade and hits high on the knee-roll. Umpire Gough denies once again and Kohli goes for the review after a long thought. Replays suggest it's pretty close! In line and impact outside off and the umpire's call intervenes on the wickets to deny Siraj a much deserved wicket. Kohli is bemused and hurls a few expletives and moves on. Ah, game of inches!
ENG 360/8 in 120 overs: Shami goes wide off the crease and zips the ball into Wood, a neat yorker but Wood brings his wood down in time to negate Shami his second. He tonks one over the mid-on fielder and finds two runs off the penultimate delivery. England trails by four runs.
Shami replaces Jadeja
ENG 358/8 in 119 overs: Admirable consistency with his line. Siraj peppers Root with serious nip-backers and foils his attempt to take a single off the last ball. Good, attacking bowling albeit a little late in the day.
ENG 358/8 in 118 overs: Kohli continues to employ Jadeja from one end to manage the over rate. He draws a tight length and Wood fends them off to get Root back on strike.
ENG 357/8 in 117 overs: Siraj to Robinson. OUT! Tucks in sharply, hits the pads, turns over and screams in appeal. Gough raises his finger at long last! Robinson goes for the review but the umpire's call rules in favour of India and England slowly nearing a close. Ollie Robinson lbw b Mohammed Siraj 6 (22b 1x4)
ENG 356/7 in 116 overs: Drinks. Jadeja loops one in and Root sits down and slaps it through midwicket for four. He's not standing back and England inches closer to the lead.
ENG 351/7 in 115 overs: What drama! Siraj gets some hefty seam movement to hit Robinson's pads three times, I repeat, three! He does not bother to appeal to Kohli for one, tucks one in sharply and pleads to umpire Gough who turns it down. Does even better off the last ball with the ball seaming in to hit sharply on the pads and begs Kohli to go for it. Kohli keeps a plain face and continues to deny Siraj another review. Kohli sheds his empathetic self and well, replays suggest he's right.
Siraj replaces Ishant
ENG 347/7 in 114 overs: Jadeja bowls short to Robinson who does well to play late in the crease. He gets a single and gets Root on strike but the skipper fails to pierce the gap off the last ball.
ENG 346/7 in 113 overs: Ishant runs with more pace and tails the ball sharply to Root's legs. Root's seeing it all with ease at the moment and nonchalantly flicks it to square leg to get two runs.
ENG 342/7 in 112 overs: Root fends off a couple of sharp drifters and takes a single to retain the strike for th next over. With Robinson joining him, it'll be interesting to see how Root goes about the rest of the day.
ENG 341/7 in 111 overs: Ishant to Ali. OUT! Edged and taken! Ishant's hard lengths fetches him another! Ishant goes full in the driving length and invites Ali to drive. The ball clips the edge and skims low to Kohli who does well to bend low and get fingers underneath the ball. Right, can this be the moment where India can strap back into the game?
Curran is the new man.
Ishant fires the ball in and shapes it away and
gone first ball! Curran is forced to poke and the outside edge flies to Rohit in slips!
Ishant has two in two! Moeen Ali c Kohli b I Sharma 27 (72b 4x40; Sam Curran c RG Sharma b I Sharma 0 (1b)
ENG 341/5 in 110 overs:
Jadeja loops it in and Root gets off strike with a flick. Ali continues to employ a neat forward push to get the job done. Quiet phase of play for both sides.
ENG 340/5 in 109 overs: Ishant comes around the wicket in a bid to bounce Ali off his feet. Unfortunately, there's nothing on the pitch even for the hard ball as it continues to keep low on its way to Pant.
ENG 339/5 in 108 overs: Jadeja attempts to hit the rough but Ali does well to lean forward and cover the patch. Three runs come off it.
ENG 336/5 in 107 overs: Master at work! Root gets to 150! Ishant is distraught as his bumper nearly flails Root. Root bounces over it and aerially lobs it through gully and it seems like a close chance for the fielder. Touch and go but a tough chance goes down. How easily has Root absorbed the pressure and now steering England towards the lead.
Ishant replaces Bumrah
ENG 330/5 in 106 overs: Kohli is desperate about the over rate as well. Jadeja continues to steam through his over and gets some drift from over the wicket. Ali does well to play with soft hands and negates the extra bounce.
ENG 328/5 in 105 overs: Another probing over from Bumrah. Ali is forced to keep a watchful outside the off-stump as Bumrah needles the fine channel with nippy deliveries. Ali leaves the ball pretty late with a measured approach and keeps Bumrah away from the offstump.
ENG 327/5 in 104 overs: Kohli's punt to bring Jadeja with a hard Dukes is interesting. He balls quick and flight and nearly sneaks through Root's defense. Jadeja treads on a tight line and continues to tune his pace while Ali and Root exchange strike.
Jadeja replaces Shami
ENG 325/5 in 103 overs: Bumrah attempts to bring the ball in to clip Ali's offstump but bends his back a tad too much. A couple of deliveries stray to his pads and another slides down leg just in reach for a diving Pant.
ENG 324/5 in 102 overs: Shami errs in line and sprays it too wide from his usual radar. The batters are a bit iffy after the break and Root restraints from attempting a hard stroke.
ENG 323/5 in 101 overs: Bumrah keeps it short against Root, forcing him to the backfoot. He takes a single through square and moves off strike. Bumrah offers a hint of width to Ali and he pushes it through covers. A misfield from Siraj at extra cover costs three runs and England continue to close the gap with India.
ENG 318/5 in 100 overs: Root disturbs Shami by pulling out of his first ball pretty late. Kohli is displeased as well. Good incisive bowling in the over from Shami as he finds some shape from middle-stump to Root who ends up edging a few. Root retains strike for the next over with an easy single through point. Kohli's field placements have been pretty defensive through the day.
ENG 317/5 in 99 overs: Bumrah rushes to Root's pads first-up and he flicks it with ease to square leg. Two runs. He comes from around the wicket to Ali and tucks the ball into him. Ali nudges it down and keeps his guard down.
Third session begins.... Root and Ali are back. Bumrah returns with the ball.
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Another productive session for the home team. Root combined with Bairstow, Buttler and Moeen to build useful partnerships. England is now just 51 runs away from a lead.
India seemed to have bowled a bit shorter than needed with the new ball. And it's been hard work for the bowlers on an excellent day for batting.
Join us for the post-tea session, in about 20 minutes.
ENG 314/5 in 98 overs: Shami draws an edge off the bat of Root. But the ball falls short of Kohli at first slip.
Runs flowing for England now; Shami bowls a short-of-a-length delivery, it pitches on middle stump and angles into Moeen, who tucks it away off his thighs for a four through fine leg.
A solid defence off the back foot to finish the over. And that's tea.
ENG 309/5 in 97 overs: Siraj bowls in the channel, Moeen is beaten! It's an excellent delivery and Moeen was stuck in his crease as he tried to negotiate that one.
Next ball is slightly shorter. It's punched through cover for four runs. And then another! That was waiting to be put away, and Moeen stands on top of it and slaps it away for another four.
ENG 300/5 in 96 overs: Root gets a leading edge to a short-of-a-length delivery and he picks up a single.
Shami pitches it up slightly and Moeen seizes the opportunity to drive, he gently caresses the ball through extra cover for three runs.
Root plays a late cut and picks up a single. And Moeen finishes the over by nicely steering the ball to deep point for four. That brings up the 300 for England. Just 65 runs away from a first-innings lead now.
ENG 291/5 in 95 overs: Root picks up a single with a flick to square leg.
Siraj angles the ball across Moeen, who again decides to play at it away from his body, stuck in his crease. The fourth delivery of the over is fuller; it's driven to mid-off. There's no timing on that stroke.
And a nice leave to finish the over.
Siraj replaces Ishant.
ENG 290/5 in 94 overs: Moeen has a waft outside the off-stump as he faces a short-of-a-length delivery on the fourth-stump line from Shami. Narrowly evades the outside edge.
And an excellent delivery to finish the over. In the channel. Moeen is stuck in his crease and can't resist a poke at it as the ball passes him by. No harm done.
ENG 290/5 in 93 overs: Ishant goes around the wicket to Moeen after Root picks up a single via a pull stroke. Moeen defends a good-length delivery and scampers for a single. Two from the over.
ENG 288/5 in 92 overs: Meanwhile, Root continues on merrily. He gets a good length ball dished out to him, outside the off-stump, and decides to go for the drive. He plays it excellently. A four through extra cover.
Then he picks up a sharp single after tucking a delivery to midwicket. Moeen Ali, the new batsman, leaves the penultimate delivery of the over alone, and then gets hit on the shoulder as he gets a short one from Shami.
ENG 283/5 in 91 overs: Bolt from the blue! Buttler seemed to have all bases covered as he negotiated most of the over from Ishant well, leaving alone or defending. Then he is surprised by a ball than comes back in sharply after pitching; Buttler tried to drive it, the ball snuck in through the gap between the bat and the pad, and hit the stumps.
Buttler is out bowled! England five down.
ENG 282/4 in 90 overs: A thick edge flies through the gap between third slip and gully. Buttler gets four runs.
Buttler picks up a single through the off-side after punching one off the back-foot.
Then Root picks up a single with a dab to third man.
There are three no-balls in the over as well as England inches closer to India's total.
ENG 272/4 in 89 overs: Ishant beats the bat as he bowls an excellent delivery in the corridor. On the third delivery, Root gets a half-volley on middle stump and he flicks it to square leg for a single.
Buttler gets a half-volley on off-stump. He drives it but doesn't time it well. Still the ball has enough legs to beat the chasing point fielder.
ENG 267/4 in 88 overs: Bumrah bowls a full delivery on leg-stump, Root picks up a leg-bye. Buttler gets behind the back-of-a-length deliveries and defends them solidly. And when it's slightly fuller, it's left alone.
Three slips in place for Bumrah.
ENG 266/4 in 87 overs: Full, on middle stump, from Shami. It's nicely on-driven by Buttler for four. Shami has settled in on a fourth-stump line; the fifth delivery cuts Buttler into half as it seams in after pitching.
And then Shami errs slightly; the length is shorter. Buttler cuts it away off the back-foot for four.
ENG 258/4 in 86 overs: A gift on his pads, and Root tucks it to long leg for four runs. And then a similar stroke: this time, the ball goes a little squarer. Two runs again.
Root gets an excellent delivery in the corridor from Bumrah, he is beaten! He gets nicely behind the next two deliveries.
That boundary took Root to 9,000 Test runs.
ENG 252/4 in 85 overs: Buttler leaves Ishant's deliveries alone outside the off-stump. On the fifth delivery, Ishant gets the ball to come into the batsman after pitching; Buttler shapes up for a defence, and the ball hits his front pad on the knee-roll or just above it. A loud shout for lbw; not given. Impact outside.
A maiden over.
Meanwhile, some news for Indian fans: Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav have completed their quarantine. They have joined the Indian team at Lord's.
ENG 251/4 in 84 overs: A less expensive over, this time, from Bumrah. He's settled into a nice line and length: in the corridor, just outside off-stump.
An inside edge yields two runs for Root; the ball travels to fine leg. Root gets some width off a shortish delivery and plays a cut again to pick up a single.
There is also a no-ball in that over.
ENG 247/4 in 83 overs: Buttler nearly chips it straight to cover! The ball evades the leaping fielder and Buttler picks up three runs. It was a short-of-a-length delivery from Ishant Sharma; Buttler tried to play it on the leg side and the ball hit the top half of his bat and went straight to cover.
ENG 243/4 in 82 overs: A dab to gully, a quick single taken and it's Root's 22nd Test century. Root lifts his arms and punches the air. It was a sharp single, but no damage done.
That's his 11th Test ton as captain.
Buttler picks up a single next ball as he defends a good length delivery from Bumrah. Then, it's slightly shorter, and Root late cuts it to third man for four. He plays a similar stroke on the final delivery and picks up two runs.
ENG 235/4 in 81 overs: Two slips and a gully in place for Siraj. And he's changed his length. He bowls in the corridor outside the off-stump, but Root plays him well. Except for the fourth delivery, when the ball moved in sharply after pitching on middle stump.
A glorious shot, square driven by Root after he gets a suitable delivery to play the shot. Three runs taken. Root moves to 99. Huge cheer from the crowd and shouts of 'Rooot' as they thought he would reach his 100 with that stroke, but the fielder at the boundary does well to save a run.
The new ball is taken.
ENG 232/4 in 80 overs: A huge shout for lbw! Jos Buttler gets a full delivery on middle stump from Jadeja, and tries to defend it off the front foot. Misses it. It was probably the arm ball.
India decides not to take the review. Replays show it would have been umpire's call on 'hitting the stumps'.
Two singles are taken in the over: Buttler drives to mid-off, and then Root flicks to leg.
ENG 230/4 in 79 overs: Siraj continues to bowl short. Left alone by Bairstow.
And the strategy has worked! Change of angle did the trick, it seems. Siraj switches to around the wicket, digs it in short, Bairstow attempts the pull. He's early on it, the ball hits his gloves and balloons up for Kohli to take a simple catch at first slip.
A frustrating way to get out, surely. Nothing happening off the pitch. Great conditions for batting. And Bairstow was set, too.
Jonny Bairstow c Kohli b Siraj 57 (107b, 7x4)
ENG 228/3 in 78 overs: Again, lots of noise by Pant behind the stumps. Root slices the ball through the gap between point and cover and moves to 94.
A final delivery is a no-ball. And it nearly produces a wicket! Good length, on off-stump, sharp turn, goes past the bat of Bairstow, narrowly evading the edge.
ENG 226/3 in 77 overs: Bairstow gets his on his back by the ball as he ducks under a short delivery from Siraj. He plays the pull shot on the next delivery and he plays it well, swivelling to place the ball past the diving wicketkeeper for a boundary.
It's a short-ball strategy to distract England's batsmen before the new ball is taken, presumably.
Root gets a full delivery for a change, defends it, and the ball travels to mid-on slowly. Time enough for a single to be taken.
ENG 220/3 in 76 overs: A forward defence from Bairstow produces a single as the ball trickles through the gap between cover and mid-off. A ball earlier, Root drove to mid-off to pick up a single and move to 92.
A lot of noise from the wicketkeeper in that over from Jadeja as he tries to encourage the bowler. India would be eagerly waiting for the new ball.
ENG 218/3 in 75 overs: Root takes on the pull shot off Mohammed Siraj. It's a fast one and he misses it; then he gets a similar delivery and he plays the shot well, rolling his wrists, to collect another single.
ENG 217/3 in 74 overs: Root moves into his 90s with a nudge to the leg side for a single. Just that one run taken from that over from Jadeja, the first over of the post-lunch session.
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If Root gets to his century, it will be the 22nd of his career. He will be joint-third on the list of the highest England century-makers in Test matches. Only Kevin Pieterson (23 centuries) and Alastair Cook (33) will be above him in the list.
Can he overtake Cook? We'll find out in a few years, but for now, it is reasonable to assume that he will score many more runs and centuries for England. He is in red-hot form at the moment. In the last 12 months, he has hit four centuries, averaging 62.21 in 11 Tests.
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Negative approach and body language from the Indians to start the day. With the ball doing seemingly far less off the pitch, the seamers were in for a hard grind in what looked like a belter. Kohli went off to a doze as the batters had fine gaps to exploit on the field on either side of the wicket. Root and Bairstow paced their innings brilliantly while also seeing off incisive spells from Bumrah and Shami along the way. India's lead has taken a dramatic hit with England trailing by 148 runs with seven wickets in hand.
ENG 216/3 in 73 overs: LUNCH. 97 runs in 28 overs for England in a thoroughly dominating session. Root is on 89 and Bairstow fresh from his first fifty in whites in ages. Kohli's men are forced to feel the heat on a dry, cold London morning.
ENG 210/3 in 72 overs: Fifty for Bairstow! Ishant tucks it in and Bairstow flicks to midwicket and gets to his first fifty since August 2019! He's walked in determined and has aced his role beautifully so far in the first session.
ENG 208/3 in 71 overs: 100-run partnership for the Yorkshire boys. Bairstow gets to the brim of a half-century as well and he's done to complement the efforts of Root in a bid to revive his career in whites.
ENG 201/3 in 70 overs: 200 up for England! A staunch reply from Root and Bairstow forces India to rummage for new options. Ishant offers width to Root who pummels it through point to find three runs and the frustrations build for Kohli.
ENG 194/3 in 69 overs: Shami runs in with extra steam and beats Root's bat convincingly. The pitch begins to act up as the ball keeps low. Shami hangs one outside the off-stump and Root misses it completely as the ball dies on the pitch before moving to Pant.
ENG 192/3 in 68 overs: Ishant builds on a strict line through the over and tosses it away later. Bairstow easily breaks the rut as Ishant strays to the pads and offers him the option to flick towards square leg.
ENG 190/3 in 67 overs: India simply out of options at the moment. Shami continues to bowl well with a nippy attack on the stumps but not enough to dislodge either batsmen. Bairstow and Root have presented a solid defense to tread through these probing spells from Bumrah and Shami.
Shami is back
ENG 186/3 in 66 overs: Ishant begins with a no-ball as he oversteps. Ishant gets the seam to move in and Bairstow gets a thick edge that falls safely. Ishant continues to tuck the ball in but Root effortlessly gets off strike with another single towards square.
Ishant replaces Bumrah
ENG 182/3 in 65 overs: Another lbw scare for Root. Jadeja brings the ball in low and wraps it flush on Root's pads as he moves forward. The ball is sliding down leg and the skipper survives once again.
ENG 181/3 in 64 overs: Bumrah tightens his line and keeps pushing the deliveries in a fine channel. Bairstow is not having it easy and ends up edging the odd delivery from Bumrah in this spell.
ENG 180/3 in 63 overs: Jadeja keeps it flat and wide outside the off-stump, hoping to make Root press forward. Root does exactly that and creams a couple of strokes only to be stopped by the cover fielder.
ENG 179/3 in 62 overs: Root continues to frustrate Kohli's men. Bumrah does well to maintain his line outside the offstump but Root creates a tinge of room and trickles one straight past Kohli in the slips. He finds a single on the off-side and retains strike for the next over.
ENG 174/3 in 61 overs: Jadeja rolls in another quiet over. Root finds a single towards square and Bairstow blocks a couple off the length. India will be wary of its over rate and perhaps that's exactly why Kohli is offering Jadeja an extended spell here.
ENG 173/3 in 60 overs: DRINKS. Bumrah finishes another sharp over with Bairstow's inside-edge nearly chopping back on to the stumps. It's been a sloppy start for India as it's allowed Root and Bairstow to get away easily in the first hour. Kohli's usual lively self has taken a reserved seat as the bowlers haven't been able to find much assistance from the pitch either.
ENG 173/3 in 59 overs: Jadeja keeps the batters on their toes. Bairstow begins with a paddle sweep for four and Jadeja sharply brings the ball into him next ball. He gets the bat down right in time to make a contact that saves him.
ENG 165/3 in 58 overs: Bumrah hits the deck more firmly and brings the ball back in to keep Root on his toes. He maintains the same length through the over and Root evidently drops the anchor to see him off.
ENG 165/3 in 57 overs: Jadeja keeps Root under the pump. He wafts one in and Root goes for the drive. Jadeja follows it up with a sharp one that zips in quickly and Root mistimes it with a late push back to the bowler.
ENG 163/3 in 56 overs: Runs begin to come at a decent click for the batters. Bumrah draws Root forward but the ball hardly does enough to put the skipper in trouble.
ENG 159/3 in 55 overs: Jadeja slides one in slowly to Root first-up. He follows up with a quicker one and Root does well to lean low and defend. Just a single from the over and a generally sleepy phase piles on for India.
Jadeja replaces Shami
ENG 158/3 in 54 overs: Bumrah begins with a poor delivery that runs fine to the boundary down the leg-side. Root stays put and tucks away a delivery that moves in before Bairstow is beaten with a low delivery outside the off-stump. Root and Bairstow also brings up their 50-run partnership!
Bumrah replaces Siraj
ENG 153/3 in 53 overs: The seamers aren't finding any help from the surface at the moment. Root and Bairstow are having an easy time seeing off Siraj's bouncers that fail to surprise them.
ENG 152/3 in 52 overs: Shami maintains a strict line to Root. Root nudges forward and gets off strike. Shami offers width to Bairstow who cuts but this time he has a fielder posted deep on the off-side.
ENG 150/3 in 51 overs: Bairstow brings up 150 for England with a strong punch down the ground. Siraj bowls a couple of bouncers before drawing a ball full that was meant to be hit.
ENG 144/3 in 50 overs: Bairstow is blooming. A genuine edge races off his blade down to the third man fence and Bairstow refines to hit one better. Shami pitches it forward and Bairstow creams it down the ground for a delightful boundary. We have a long delay as a security guard comes in Bairstow's sight before the last ball. It takes an eternity for the umpire to get the man moving from the batter's horizon.
ENG 136/3 in 49 overs: The Yorkshire men at the middle are having a good time exchanging strike far more easily today. Siraj continues to tail the ball in and Root tucks it fine off square leg to fetch three runs. Bairstow continues to find a couple of singles to keep the board ticking.
ENG 128/3 in 48 overs: Through the slips! Shami induces the outside edge from Bairstow who goes hard at the ball outside the off-stump. The ball skims and zips past Rahane in the slips for four.
ENG 124/3 in 47 overs: Fifty for Root! He notches it up in style with a languid push through the covers for a boundary off Siraj. His rich vein of form against India continues with a third-50 plus score in as many innings in the series.
Siraj from the other end
ENG 120/3 in 46 overs: Root begins his day with a glide through gully for a single. Shami runs in with a wider angle and hits the channel against Bairstow. Bairstow leans forward and presents a neat defence.
Shami to begin proceedings...
Day 3 underway! Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow return to the middle. The Indian fielders run in to their positions as well.
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3:20PM IST: PITCH REPORT: Nick Knight says "There is still a fair amount of green tinge on the surface. One or two have kept low a bit, sometimes the edges haven't carried. Not many footmarks. But overall, should be good for batting overall,"
3:15PM IST: Jadeja to the broadcaster: We have put up a good total on the board. Have to get a few wickets today. Our main focus is to restrict them under 250 then we are in the game. Whenever you play in England it's always tough conditions. Have to make plans accordingly. They've (Rohit, Rahul) been playing well, having good opening partnerships.
2:45PM IST: A focused chat from Ravi Shastri with his boys. The first session will be key for the Indian seamers.
2:34PM IST: Moving day up ahead!
2:05PM IST: Numbers game
1:40PM IST:
All bright and ready!
1:30PM IST: Two hours to the start. Meanwhile, here's a throwback to 31 years ago! On this day, Sachin Tendulkar scored his first international hundred at Old Trafford, Manchester. READ:
Day 2 Review
With a ton-up KL Rahul and a tentative Ajinkya Rahane doing well to see off the bowlers on day one, India would have set itself an ambitious target for Friday. To its dismay, the plans were shuddered from the over of play as Rahul and Rahane fell off successive overs before Jimmy Anderson paved his way to a 31st Test fifer at 39!
Pant and Jadeja ensured a brief phase of resistance before England bundled India for 364. England's shaky top-order was back to the fore in the second session as Dom Sibley holed out in a dubious manner once again off Siraj before the fiery seamer castled Haseeb Hameed first ball on his return to the set-up after five years.
Kohli's men had their tails up and was all set to hammer down the host before an effortless Joe Root joined hands with a desperate yet gritty Rory Burns to hold fort for England till tea. The pair began to ease up and pierce the gaps in the third session as the frustration of losing two poor reviews began to bother Kohli and his seamers. Mohammed Shami instilled a late nail on the host's hopes of a neat finish as he trapped Burns one short of a fifty. With England finishing the day at 119/3, 245 behind India, an intense day three is on the cards at Lord's. Will India force another early folding for Root's men or can England ride uphill and take the lead to deny chances of an early win?
WHAT THEY SAID
KL Rahul: "It's too early to predict (a win). We want to go out there tomorrow [Saturday] and try and get a couple of wickets and put pressure on their batsmen. We need to be disciplined and keep working on our plans. We have plans for every batsman." READ MORE
James Anderson: “It definitely is as special. Every time you play on this ground, it is special. And certainly, the last few times I’ve come here, I think, ‘would this be the last time I’m playing here?’ I think it’s an extra bit special, at Lord’s, certainly for me personally. The place I made my debut. The place I got my first five-wicket haul. And to get seven here is incredible. I don’t know how I did it. Hopefully, it’s not my last time here, and hopefully, it’s not my last time on the honours board.” READ MORE
Playing XIs
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