Every step of the way, Jasprit Bumrah has proved naysayers comprehensively wrong. In the last Test India played, Jasprit Bumrah’s back finally gave way. He had been carrying the load of his country’s hopes for so long that something had to give. When he walked off the field in Sydney, no one knew how long he would be away, and how his bowling would hold up when he returned. But when India next played a Test, Jasprit Bumrah turned up with 5 for 83.
Those figures are deceptive because they could have been so much more. Jasprit Bumrah was bowling with all the venom, guile and skill of old, but his team could not seem to hold their catches off him. Eventually, he just did it himself, castling England’s last batters. It is thanks to Jasprit Bumrah that India still have parity against England after three days’ play in the first Test at Headingley. Without Jasprit Bumrah, India were looking at conceding a potentially big lead.
Harry Brook threw his head back in despair after picking out long leg but his innings of 99 set up a tantalising one-innings match at his home ground. India had three first-innings centurions to England’s one and Jasprit Bumrah completed a dazzling five-for to prove he is a class above any other bowler on show, yet only six runs separated the two teams after eight sessions.
Day 3 : Session 1 : India strike twice but Harry Brook’s fifty narrows deficit
India struck a couple of times in the first session on Day 3, and for a change the bowler was not Jasprit Bumrah. Despite this, England made steady progress, thanks to Harry Brook’s unbeaten half-century and his useful stands with Ben Stokes and Jamie Smith. England scored 118 runs in the 28 overs bowled in the session as the hosts went into Lunch at 327 for 5, trailing by 144.
Prasidh Krishna, after being hit for a four and a six by Harry Brook in the first over, struck early in the day, albeit not with his best ball. Bowling short and outside off to Ollie Pope, he saw the centurion attempt a cut but extra bounce meant the edge landed in the gloves of the ‘keeper.
Harry Brook, meanwhile, wasn’t afraid to take on Jasprit Bumrah, even coming down the track to crack a boundary through cover, and continued scoring fours off Prasidh. Stokes, at the other end, was instead watchful and was even tested on a couple of occasions by Jasprit Bumrah.
Ravindra Jadeja was the first bowling change of the day and he targetted the rough outside the left-hander’s offstump. Meanwhile, Stokes executed a lovely off drive for a four off Mohammed Siraj in his first over of the day, helping England past 250. Brook gave the charge to Siraj, who bowled it short, only to see the batter guide it over the slip cordon for a four. Stokes then brought out the reverse sweep for a four off Jadeja and edged a Siraj delivery for a boundary as England made good progress, getting 59 runs in the first hour.
After his near-miss on Saturday night, Brook made his intentions for Sunday morning clear by cutting Prasidh for four and swiping him over midwicket for six in the very first over, and then charging down to slap Bumrah’s first ball through the covers. It was audacious batting, but underpinned by Brook’s trust in the reliable bounce of his home pitch.
Ollie Pope could only add six runs to his overnight 100 not out, fiddling Prasidh behind off a short, wide ball, but Jamie Smith joined Brook and matched his attacking tempo. India rotated their seamers from one end while Ravindra Jadeja kept things tight at the other, and it was Jadeja who had Brook put down first, Rishabh Pant failing to gather an outside edge.
The fifth wicket pair took the partnership to 50 early in the second hour when Brook danced down the track to Siraj, dispatching him for four with authority.
Siraj, however, struck back with a decisive blow, getting Stokes to edge behind. Jadeja was finding help from the pitch, creating doubts in Brook’s mind but the batter was quick on his feet when he pulled one from the spinner although the ball wasn’t too short. Shardul Thakur was also given the ball late in the session and he bowled one short and wide to be put away for a four by Smith. In the same over the wicketkeeper-batter used the DRS to reverse the onfield decision after being given out lbw.
Smith was given out in single-figures, but successfully reviewed an lbw decision after being hit on the shin by a full toss; Thakur thought he had dismissed him, but remained largely anonymous and leaked 38 runs in the six overs he bowled. After three days, Shubman Gill must rue the decision to leave Kuldeep Yadav carrying the drinks.
It was a good battle between Smith and Thakur, with the batter getting beaten once before dragging one off the inner-half of the bat for a four. After England reached 300, Jadeja found the edge of Brook’s bat but Rishabh Pant failed to hold on.
Smith was nearly caught at short-leg and in the same over, while Brook brought up his fifty. Bumrah returned to the attack before the Lunch break and nearly had Smith caught at mid on before being struck for a boundary. Bumrah’s lines weren’t ideal in this spell as the England batters accessed the onside and brought up the half-century stand before the break.
Day 3 : Session 2 : Jasprit Bumrah’s 5-fer restricts England to 465 after strong batting from Brook
Harry Brook’s brisk 99 off 112 deliveries, along with useful contributions from Jamie Smith (40), Chris Woakes (38) and Brydon Carse (22) negated any advantage that India would have hoped for when they took the second new ball early in the second session on Day 3 of the first Test in Leeds.
Although Prasidh Krishna delivered some key strikes, India weren’t disciplined and penetrative enough with the ball, which allowed England to get crucial runs before they were bowled out for 465 just before Tea, only 6 shy of India’s total. Jasprit Bumrah bagged the last two wickets to finish with a fifer but England got 138 runs in 23.4 overs bowled after Lunch, with as many as 240 runs coming for their last six wickets, as against the 41 India got in their innings.
Smith and Harry Brook were positive at the start of the second session. Smith handled short balls from Prasidh Krishna, pulling them for a four and a six, while Harry Brook played a falling-away scoop shot off Jadeja for a boundary. India, meanwhile, lost a review when Smith missed a pull, with Yashasvi Jaiswal convincing the captain that he heard a sound. Eventually, the short-ball ploy worked as Smith was caught in the deep, with Jadeja and Sai Sudharsan collaborating for the catch next to the boundary.
India resolved to test England’s patience with a bouncer barrage, and Smith could not resist the temptation. He crunched Prasidh over square leg for six with a vicious pull, but miscued a wider short ball two balls later and fell to a smart relay catch as Jadeja parried the chance up to Sai Sudharsan in the deep. It was an ill-timed brain fade: the new ball was due at the end of the over.
Brook resolved to use it to his advantage, blazing consecutive boundaries off a fired-up Mohammed Siraj, who let him know what he thought of his aggression. Jasprit Bumrah covered his eyes in frustration when Yashasvi Jaiswal shelled Brook at gully, and Siraj soon backed off when Brook launched him over long-on for a towering straight six.
India took the second new ball as soon as it was available, with Jasprit Bumrah starting off with it. Chris Woakes survived a couple of overs from India’s pace spearhead before Brook took on Siraj, going straight down the ground and over covers for a couple of fours.
Jasprit Bumrah found the edge of Brook’s bat but Jaiswal put down a simple catch at gully. Brook then entered the 90s in style, smashing a six over long on off Siraj, who in the earlier over had a few words to say to the batter. The over ended with a boundary as England got 67 runs in the nine overs bowled in the hour after Lunch.
On 99, Brook lined up his opportunity to reach three-figures with a boundary; instead, he was left to drag himself off the field. That prompted Woakes to become the aggressor, taking only 36 balls to add 50 for the eighth wicket with Brydon Carse before Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah (twice) left the stumps splayed.
Woakes played a confident off drive for a four off Jasprit Bumrah after the drinks break before Prasidh, replacing Siraj from the other end, coaxed Brook into a pull with a short ball and got him to top-edge it behind square on 99. Woakes then struck a four off Prasidh to help England past the 400 mark, and Brydon Carse also hit a couple of streaky boundaries off the same bowler.
Meanwhile, a few deliveries were taking off from a good length, although England welcomed the extra runs that came with them. Woakes also hit a short ball from Prasidh for a six and guided one past the thirdman fence, and Siraj continued to leak boundaries, adding to India’s frustrations as the eighth wicket pair raised a fifty stand in only 36 balls.
Siraj finally found some relief when Carse backed away to a yorker and was bowled. Bumrah was back bowling just before Tea and he even found the edge of Josh Tongue’s bat, only for the ball to travel to the boundary, and a searing yorker narrowly missed the stumps. Bumrah, however, did get a wicket, his fourth in the innings, when he castled Woakes with a nip-backer. Tongue’s four off Jadeja brought the deficit down to single digits before he was bowled by Jasprit Bumrah, who picked up his 14th five-wicket haul.
Day 3 : Session 3 : KL Rahul’s unbeaten 47 runs steer’s India’s lead to 96 after Day 3
Harry Brook’s 99 and valuable lower-order contributions meant India were not able to gain an advantage on Day 3 of the first Test in Leeds despite Jasprit Bumrah bagging a five-wicket haul. As many as 240 runs came from the last six England wickets in their first innings, as against 41 that India got earlier, as the hosts ended up with 465.
With a marginal lead, India lost Yashasvi Jaiswal early in their second essay but a solid knock from KL Rahul (47*), with support from Sai Sudharsan in a 66-run stand, helped the visitors end the day at 90 for 2, leading by 96.
India’s second innings started in blustery conditions, with a slight drizzle also welcoming the openers. Jaiswal hit an early boundary, pulling Brydon Carse while Rahul nearly dragged a Chris Woakes delivery onto the stumps.
He was, however, in control when he carved one through the off side and essayed an elegant cover drive for two fours off Woakes. But the opening stand did not last long as Jaiswal was dismissed when he edged a short of length delivery from Carse that moved away. Sudharsan, on a pair, got off the mark with a four to third-man in the same over.
Woakes held his back hip while receiving treatment during his 38, and his average speed with the new ball dipped below 80mph. But Carse cranked it up to 90mph running up the hill, and struck an early blow with a snorter to Jaiswal which angled in from around the wicket, bounced steeply and took the outside edge.
To the backdrop of a boisterous Western Terrace, much livelier than it had been through the first two days, Rahul was the calmest man at Headingley. He drove Carse for two fours in three balls: the first down the ground and the second pinged through the covers, and seized on Shoaib Bashir’s early drag-down.
The England pacers bowled probing lines but Rahul and Sudharsan were up to the task, building a good partnership. They were solid with their defence, played with soft hands, rotated the strike well and capitalised on the half-volleys as they ensured India kept moving along.
The 10th over was an especially productive one for India as Rahul ran all four after playing a flick, followed by an on drive and a cover drive for two boundaries as the lead crossed 50.
KL Rahul also struck fours in the first overs of Josh Tongue and Shoaib Bashir while Sudharsan pushed a Ben Stokes delivery to the off side boundary in his first over, having left deliveries sliding down the leg, with a leg-slip in place. Shortly after the half-century stand was raised, Sudharsan got a reprieve, put down at backward point by Ben Duckett when he played a cut off Tongue.
Sai Sudharsan walked out on a pair and guided his first ball to the boundary, playing late and building a substantial partnership with Rahul for the second wicket. But he fell to Stokes for the second time in the match, chipping an inswinger to short midwicket and failing to punish Ben Duckett for a drop at gully.
Having reached 40, Rahul played a classy cover drive for a four off Tongue while Sudharsan clipped Stokes for a boundary. But the flick shot later proved to be his undoing as Stokes, targetting the pads with the ball swinging in, had Sudharsan caught at short midwicket.
Shubman Gill got going straightaway, playing a cut over thirdman for a four off Stokes and was unbeaten along with Rahul when the players left the field with rain picking up, leading to Stumps. Light but persistent rain brought the day to an early, anticlimactic ending, but with the sense that another Headingley classic is brewing.
Road Ahead on Day 4 for England and India
The game so finely poised at the moment. Can’t say who is ahead at this stage. The day started off with a nice partnership between Brook and Stokes – with the former stroking his way to 99 before finding deep backward square-leg with a top-edge. Contributions from Jamie Smith, Woakes and Carse helped England and they were bowled out just 6 short of India’s first-innings total. Jasprit Bumrah who saw catches dropped off his bowling today too, did not let that deter him as he took his 12th fifer away from home, joining Kapil Dev in the process.
With the scores almost level after the first knocks, it turned the game effectively into a one-innings shootout and England started well by removing Jaiswal for just four. But Rahul and Sai Sudharsan joined hands and put on a good stand. The former has looked world-class and his drives have been a treat to watch. He has not given England a chance and it was left to Stokes to break the stand which he did by getting the debutant caught at mid-wicket.
There was always rain forecast for the day and it arrived exactly at 6:04pm which meant that play could not go on any further as the scheduled close of play is at 6pm. Stokes tried to bowl as many overs as possible by throwing the ball to Bashir, but the umpires, after a heavy burst, took the players in much to Stokes’ disappointment.
India lead by 96 and would be looking at something in the region of 300 to give themselves a good chance of winning this one meanwhile England would look to restrict India to minimum target so that they can chase the same with their famous Bazball approach.
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