ENG vs IND 3rd Test: Jadeja's brave knock in vain as ENG clinch thriller

India came to the Lord's with the hope to replicate their 151-run win against England, which they recorded in 2021, but English pacers broke India's dream with a brilliant outing

England scripted a fantastic win over India in the third Test at Lord’s while defending a small total of just 192. England pacers ripped apart the Indian batting line-up with precision as the visitors were bundled out for 170 despite lower order fightback, as the hosts won the match by 22 runs and went 2-1 up in the series. It will be a do-or-die situation for India when they take the field for the fourth Test at Old Trafford, Manchester, starting Wednesday, July 23, as one more loss will mean England will walk away with another home series win against India.

 

England start with bat

For the first time in the series, England, after winning the toss, opted to bat first in the third Test at Lord’s. It was a quite unusual innings from England as they played without their aggressive style of play, that is Bazball. Joe Root (104) scored a record 37th century to lead from the front and was complemented well by half-centuries from Jamie Smith (51) and Brydon Carse (56), and cameos from Ollie Pope (44) and Ben Stokes (44), as they finished with 387 for 10 after 112.3 overs.

 

Jasprit Bumrah, with a brilliant five-wicket haul, was India’s best bowler in the innings.

India reply on equal terms

In a very rare moment, India also finished their first innings on 387, with KL Rahul (100) being the top scorer for his side. Rishabh Pant (74) and Ravindra Jadeja (72) also scored brilliant half-centuries, while Washington Sundar (23) and Nitish Reddy (30) played handy cameos to keep India on level terms after the first innings.

 

Chris Woakes, with three wickets, was England’s best bowler in the innings.

Sundar shines in third innings

In the third innings of the match and second innings of England, it was Indian spinner Washington Sundar who stole the show with his brilliant spell of 4 for 22 as India bundled England out for just 192. Joe Root (40) and Ben Stokes (33) were the two top scorers for England in the innings.

English pacers strike back

In the final innings, India, chasing 193, started with confidence but were soon hit with a huge reality check about the Lord’s wicket as English pacers fired back in style. Archer, Carse and Stokes combined their ruthless attack to reduce India to 82 for 7 in mere chase, turning the tide of the match in their favour. Nitish Reddy tried to fight back alongside Jadeja but was removed by Chris Woakes as India were pushed to the verge of a loss. Jasprit Bumrah (5) was the ninth wicket to fall for India and Ben Stokes removed him with a short ball. Ravindra Jadeja (61 not out) tried his best to get India India over the line with Md Siraj but the later was eventually dismissed by Shoaib Bashir as India were all-out on 170 handing England 22 runs win.