The first Test at Leeds is evenly poised at the end of the first three days. The game has ebbed and flowed and it could have been so much better for India had they held on to their catches and bowled better. There were lots of dropped catches and one man who benefitted from it was Harry Brook. He was given a reprieve once via a no ball dismissal. Then Harry Brook was dropped twice and made India pay for it.
The main highlight of yesterday’s play was how many times India dropped catches and gave lives to the Englishmen. Harry Brook benefitted from it the most. But there were others who were dropped as well. India’s ground fielding was decent but their catching was awful to say the least. They dropped five catches and the batters made India pay big time.
Harry Brook’s reprieves hurt India the most as England fightback.Â
Harry Brook is the number second ranked Test batter in the world at present. If you want to have success against him, dismiss him early before he gets set as he is an aggressive batter. India had the opportunity but were let down by their fielders. He benefitted from the misfortunes of India and took England to a good total yesterday.
First, when he came in late in on Day 2, he was circumspect and wanted to play out the day. In the final over of the day, Brook hit a short ball off Bumrah up in the air and Siraj took a good tumbling catch inside the circle. But alas! Bumrah had overstepped and Brook got a lifeline when on 0 when the score was 208/3. Then on Day 3, Brook came out all guns blazing and took on the bowling. He played some audacious shots and even attacked Bumrah with an elegant cover drive. Brook had settled in and was in for the long haul.
Then on 46, Ravindra Jadeja induced the outside edge and Rishabh Pant dropped the catch as Brook continued his merry ways. The score at that stage was 300/5. As if these reprieves were not enough, another came after Lunch with the second new ball. It was off Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling. Brook tried to guide the back of the length delivery and got the outside edge to Yashasvi Jaiswal at fourth slip and he dropped a dolly. Brook was on 82* then and the score was 369/6. Later, his luck finally ran out as he fell to the short-pitched bowling trap and was holed out by Shardul Thakur at deep fine leg for 99 at the score of 398/7.
What this did was allowed Brook to build crucial partnerships with his other partners. He put on 51 off 82 balls with Ben Stokes, 73 off 88 balls with Jamie Smith and 49 off 48 balls with Chris Woakes before he departed. Not only he scored 99 extra runs, but added these important partnerships with middle and lower order batters to reduce the deficit even more.
Dropped Catches and Shoddy Fielding Hurts India Big Time
India’s fielding overall in the first innings was way below average. The ground fielding was decent but the catching left a lot to be desired. When you are playing a top team in their own backyard, you are expected and supposed to take catches. But sadly, that did not happen as India dropped multiple catches. Not only Harry Brook was benefitted and made India pay, there were other batters that made India pay as well.
India dropped as many as 5 catches in the first innings which is the most they have dropped in a Test match in the last 5 years. With Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma gone, the slip cordon has been rejigged and that has not really helped India as the youngsters are not ready to field in the slips or close in. Ben Duckett was dropped twice on 11 and 15 off the bowling off Bumrah. First Yashasvi Jaiswal dropped him which was a tough chance at gully diving low to his right. Then Ravindra Jadeja dropped him at backward point when on 15. He went on to make 62 off 94 balls.
Ollie Pope scored a majestic century in the first innings and finished with 106 off 137 balls. But when he was batting on 60* he was dropped in the slip cordon by Yashasvi Jaiswal off Jasprit Bumrah. Jaiswal has dropped three catches in this Test match which is not acceptable at this level. He might have scored a great ton, but needs to improve his catching. Ground fielding was also tardy at times, but catching is a big area of concern. India needs to immediately address these issues if they wish to defend any total in the fourth innings successfully. As the old cliche goes, catches win matches and failing which it hurts you a lot.
What Lies Ahead
The Test match is evenly poised as we approach Day 4. It could have been so much better for India had they taken their chances, but it is what it is. With a first innings lead of 6 runs, India have gone to 90/2 in 23.5 overs with a lead of 96 runs with 8 wickets in hand. India will aim to bat well and build a significant lead that will challenge England in the final innings. The visitors need to bat at least two sessions to stay in the game. England, on the other hand, will look to take early wickets and put pressure on India. They know one good session, and they will be closer to winning this game.
One thing is for certain barring rain stoppages, we will have a result in this Test match. England will go for anything that India sets because they love chasing. India collapses and then the match will be one-sided in favour of England. The hosts have their slight noses in front as we speak, but India are not out of it yet. They have to fight tooth and nail in all departments of the game to get a positive result from this game. An intriguing day awaits us all at Leeds.