India lead England by 171 runs with 7 wickets in hand at stumps on Day 3 of the 4th Test at the Oval

[MenInG]

India's CHETESHWAR PUJARA, who hit 61 in a second-wicket stand of 153 with Rohit Sharma, feels his partner - and fellow opener KL Rahul - deserve most praise:

“It was an important partnership but credit goes to the openers, they gave us a good start. “The way KL (Rahul) and Rohit are batting it gives a lot of confidence to the players who are coming in.

“When I went in to bat, we spoke about keeping the scoreboard moving. The ball wasn’t doing much and it was good conditions to play some shots.

“Rohit has been batting well throughout the series, he’s got a couple of fifties and it was time he converted those fifties into a big one and today was the day.

“The way he was batting, it was really pleasing to watch from the non-striker’s end. He was timing the ball really well and played some shots which put us in a really good position in the game.”

 

[NishanKonar]

Virat Kohli will not get a better pitch to get a test century. India desperately needs one here to seal the game

Just bat till tea & declare & the game is in the bag

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

Remember Jade Dernbach?

He was so rubbish that opposition fans used to get annoyed.

Thats how bad some English batsmen are.

But don't count them out yet.

This ain't that series.

Jade Dernbach was a bowler not a batsman. And he was from South Africa.

 

[MenInG]

England assistant coach PAUL COLLINGWOOD feels the match is still in the balance going into day four:

“It was a tough day out in the field and it was surprising how little swing we got. We tried everything today, we tried changing the shiny side of the ball, we showed a lot of discipline, our accuracy was very good.

“But sometimes you’ve got to take your hats off and say the Indian batsmen played really well. Rohit Sharma at the top of the order played really straight and made it difficult for us.

“We’re still in this game massively, we’ve seen throughout this series that momentum can shift rapidly and we’ve put the Indian middle order under a lot of pressure at times so we want to turn up tomorrow morning and take some early wickets.”

 

[MenInG]

Rohit Sharma scored his first overseas Test hundred, while Cheteshwar Pujara chipped in with an attacking 61 as India ended day three at The Oval on 270/7, a lead of 171, to leave the fourth Test deliciously poised.

Resuming on their overnight 43/0 in overcast conditions, India had the perfect start as openers KL Rahul and Rohit saw through the first hour. Awaiting the bad delivery, the pair were quick to punish those to keep the scoreboard ticking as they added 36 runs in the first hour.

James Anderson, as he often does, struck for England just as Rahul was approaching his half-century. Initially given not-out by the umpire, the replays showed that Rahul had edged the ball to the keeper, and India were 83/1.

Cheteshwar Pujara joined Rohit at the crease, and the duo ensured there were no further hiccups for the rest of the session. At Lunch, India had a lead of nine, having reached 108/1.

The pair continued their excellent run in the second session, with Pujara, in particular, adopting an aggressive approach early on. That mantle passed to Rohit as he neared his eighth Test century, the opener taking a particular liking to Moeen Ali's off-spin.

He reached the mark with typical flourish, tonking Ali for a six down the ground, highlighting what has been a successful series with the bat for the opener with the all-important century. Pujara was also on the verge of a half-century on 48*, as the visitors ended the session on 199/1, with a lead of exactly 100 runs.

Pujara would bring up his half-century, continuing his form from his excellent 91 at Headingley. The Indians looked set for a big total with the pair of Rohit and Pujara looking largely untroubled.

But the introduction of the second new ball would bring about a change in the landscape of the contest. Ollie Robinson delivered a brilliant over, first dismissing Rohit Sharma for 127. He followed that up with the wicket of Cheteshwar Pujara for 61, and India found themselves in trouble with two fresh batsmen at the crease.

Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja had a tricky proposition on their hands – the floodlights were on due to overcast conditions, and the English pacers were buoyed by the quick dismissals. The lead was yet to cross the 150-run mark.

But the pair countered the conditions expertly, with Kohli looking in good touch. The light dipped further, however, with England having to bowl spin from both ends.

It wasn't long before play was suspended due to bad light, and it was stumps shortly thereafter, with Kohli (22*) and Jadeja (9*) set to resume on what is expected to be an exciting fourth morning.

 

[Last Monetarist]

Think England have a good chance to win if they can restrict India's lead below 300. It's still an even game for mine.

If it becomes a shootout where England start playing aggressively with a set total in mind then their white ball instincts can kick in as happened last year at Old Trafford against Pakistan. To be fair, they had Jos Buttler at the crease back then and there's no one comparable in the middle order currently.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

If India can collapse before securing a lead of 300 then so can England while chasing that target. India's game to lose.

 

[MP2011]

Oh you were talking about Buffet?

Yeah, he has been our eternal lucky charm.

Yeah I was.

 

[Mainul]

Remember Jade Dernbach?

He was so rubbish that opposition fans used to get annoyed.

Thats how bad some English batsmen are.

But don't count them out yet.

This ain't that series.

Jade Dernbach was not an opener, he was a bowler

Is England doing some kind of antiracism job by picking Haseeb, Moyeen whom I don't think are qualified to represent England at test level? Or England is suffering from lack of talent?

 

[Savak]

Lol at the people who think England has a chance. Do they not remember what happened in the Second test Day 5 when the wicket had nothing in it. This Indian bowling attack is better than England when the wicket has nothing in it.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

Lol at the people who think England has a chance. Do they not remember what happened in the Second test Day 5 when the wicket had nothing in it. This Indian bowling attack is better than England when the wicket has nothing in it.

Exactly. Target of 250 will be good enough to wrap up England's inning.

 

[hb787]

England are out of this match surely. Terrible first innings score and today allowed India to build a huge lead.

 

[MRSN]

Lol at the people who think England has a chance. Do they not remember what happened in the Second test Day 5 when the wicket had nothing in it. This Indian bowling attack is better than England when the wicket has nothing in it.

Tbh Eng team is really mediocre these days. Their slip catching has been worst despite playing against an Asian side. Their batting has only one reliable namr in Root. Their opening pair looks worst out of the top 6 teams. Their bowling is good. You can't blame them especially after restricting Ind for a below 200 total in the 1st innings but batting should have batted Ind out of this test match on day 2. Won't be surprised if India comes back and beat Eng 3-1.

 

[MRSN]

I have never seen Eng so poor in batting and fielding like we have seen in this series.

 

[MRSN]

India won't get a better chance to win a series in England. They really should bat till tea tomorrow and get a lead of 350. That should be good enough for a side who has Root with a diminishing golden patch.

 

[sindhiboy]

Moeen has bowled poorly all series.
Leach is a much better spinner. Moeen is prefered only due to his batting, which isn't even worth keeping him in the XI.
Rohit sharma deserved the luck to get to his hundred. India in a very strong position, something tells me england will need another century from root to chase 300.

 

[Mainul]

Tbh Eng team is really mediocre these days. Their slip catching has been worst despite playing against an Asian side. Their batting has only one reliable namr in Root. Their opening pair looks worst out of the top 6 teams. Their bowling is good. You can't blame them especially after restricting Ind for a below 200 total in the 1st innings but batting should have batted Ind out of this test match on day 2. Won't be surprised if India comes back and beat Eng 3-1.

India already should have been 2-1 up in this series. England weather saved England in the first test. India is the deserving winner in this series

 

[Robert]

Batted India.

England attack looking pedestrian without some real pace. 4 x FM will do it on a green wicket but get exposed otherwise.

 

[Mainul]

Moeen has bowled poorly all series.
Leach is a much better spinner. Moeen is prefered only due to his batting, which isn't even worth keeping him in the XI.
Rohit sharma deserved the luck to get to his hundred. India in a very strong position, something tells me england will need another century from root to chase 300.

Yes Leech is far better bowler. Moeen is lucky to play 60 ods tests .England is badly missing Stokes

 

[Robert]

India already should have been 2-1 up in this series. England weather saved England in the first test. India is the deserving winner in this series

Well, I say weather saved India from being beaten. Another two wickets, and the rest would have folded.

 

[Robert]

I have never seen Eng so poor in batting and fielding like we have seen in this series.

Batting has been bad for years.

But the catching is dreadful, Minor County standard. Remember the Cook-Flintoff-Swann-Strauss cordon that caught everything?

 

[Chrish]

Game is pretty much in the bag for India. 200+ is difficult to chase in 4th innings regardless of conditions and England’s batting is too fragile much like India.

India should get at least 250+ from here.

 

[Mainul]

Well, I say weather saved India from being beaten. Another two wickets, and the rest would have folded.

That pitch had been eased out considerably . Even out of form Pujara was batting with a strike rate of 92! It was all India's game to loose from there . England was lucky

 

[Smbhayi]

Jade Dernbach was a bowler not a batsman. And he was from South Africa.

Don't know where is he's from but he played for England.. Was a decentish T20 bowler, kinda like Sohail Thanvir.

 

[Smbhayi]

Jade Dernbach was not an opener, he was a bowler

Is England doing some kind of antiracism job by picking Haseeb, Moyeen whom I don't think are qualified to represent England at test level? Or England is suffering from lack of talent?

Actually Moen is better than his alternatives, and Haseeb got his chance due to others not performing..

 

[MenInG]

Day 3 highlights:

[utube]5g_DccMyluo[/utube]

 

[Saurav]

Batting has been bad for years.

But the catching is dreadful, Minor County standard. Remember the Cook-Flintoff-Swann-Strauss cordon that caught everything?

is Burns regular in slips?Looks grossly incompetent.

 

[Napa]

Have to agree with this. England do provide sporting wickets for visitors and gives them a chance to win.

India provides wickets which suit Indian bowlers.

England provides wickets which suit English bowlers.

To win away matches you need bowlers who can perform in foreign conditions. England doesn’t have such bowlers so their team does badly in India.

Remember, both teams have to play on the same wicket.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Jade Dernbach was a bowler not a batsman. And he was from South Africa.

Jade Dernbach was not an opener, he was a bowler

Is England doing some kind of antiracism job by picking Haseeb, Moyeen whom I don't think are qualified to represent England at test level? Or England is suffering from lack of talent?

Bhayon example ke context ko samjho.

I know Dernbach is a bowler.

Is England doing some kind of antiracism job by picking Haseeb, Moyeen whom I don't think are qualified to represent England at test level? Or England is suffering from lack of talent?

I don't think so.

Just lack of quality.

 

[Robert]

That pitch had been eased out considerably . Even out of form Pujara was batting with a strike rate of 92! It was all India's game to loose from there . England was lucky

I’d say 2/3 chance India, 1/3 England. We will never know.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Those who are dismissing England's chances don't know much about Oval.

This is the same ground where India almost chased down 429 thanks to Sunny's 220 masterclass.

Last time, India were bowled out for 330 chasing 470 with JUST 3 batsmen crossing 30 (KL 149, Pant 114 odd and Rahane 37 if I am not wrong).

England is so not out of the game yet.

Had the pitch started to go up and down, then yes.

But it's still a very very good track for now.

India should focus on getting to 250 first...then 300.

 

[bantu]

India need a lead in excess of 300 to win .. 350 will be ideal ... people saying England will lose even chasing 200 is not correct .. They might collapse to a score below 200 only if they are chasing a bigger target/score board pressure..

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

India provides wickets which suit Indian bowlers.

England provides wickets which suit English bowlers.

To win away matches you need bowlers who can perform in foreign conditions. England doesn’t have such bowlers so their team does badly in India.

Remember, both teams have to play on the same wicket.

Indians pay the price for being too good at home.

I think we should develop the art of giving high scoring turners.

Chennai 2013
Mumbai 2016

Makes the game more fun.

Maybe the type of soil makes the difference.

 

[Saj]

The draw looking the most likely result to me unless one of the teams really messes up in the nest 2 days.

The wicket looks good and doesn't look like it's going to get much worse.

 

[wrongun]

We don't see many draws at all in Test cricket these days. I expect that trend will continue here- 2 whole days is a lot of cricket. It's still either teams, but I think there'll be a result.

 

[Savak]

The draw looking the most likely result to me unless one of the teams really messes up in the nest 2 days.

The wicket looks good and doesn't look like it's going to get much worse.

There was nothing in the wicket on Day 5 of the second test match and England only had to survive 2.5 sessions. We all saw what happened there.

 

[globalcitizen]

India could have scored 50 more runs if not for bad light. But I still feel it was an advantage because they might have lost couple of wickets with momentum england had. and score of 200 for 6 would have looked much worse.

 

[globalcitizen]

Looking at the pitch, india certainly needs a minimum lead of 275. So they should go back to attritional cricket in first hour and score 60 to 70 runs by lunch and possibly loosing 3 wickets. Then expect lower order to score another 30 to 40 runs.

Draw looks distinct possibility now there will be a winner.

 

[Napa]

Shardul Thakur brought India back into this match with his 50 in the first inning and with a wicket of Ollie Pope in England's first inning. And now Rohit is making sure that India gets a healthy and match winning lead.

Shardul is one of the most underestimated Indian players.

 

[PakLFC]

Thanks to some good batting yesterday belonged to India. Effectively, India are 170-3 or something with Kohli at the crease looking good. After both first innings were complete India would have more then settled for the current position. Chasing last is always a difficult task as it is on top of which England too are an average batting side. India is in the driving seat here folks if they bowl well in the second innings could take a lead in the series. Bad news is tomorrows weather seems to be suggesting plenty of rain.

 

[Devadwal]

Thanks to some good batting yesterday belonged to India. Effectively, India are 170-3 or something with Kohli at the crease looking good. After both first innings were complete India would have more then settled for the current position. Chasing last is always a difficult task as it is on top of which England too are an average batting side. India is in the driving seat here folks if they bowl well in the second innings could take a lead in the series. Bad news is tomorrows weather seems to be suggesting plenty of rain.

Where you're seeing the weather report because BBC and Met office are showing no chance of rain forecast.

 

[Devadwal]

Day 3 highlights:

[utube]5g_DccMyluo[/utube]

Title of highlights seem to little baised .

 

[battler]

Those who are dismissing England's chances don't know much about Oval.

This is the same ground where India almost chased down 429 thanks to Sunny's 220 masterclass.

Last time, India were bowled out for 330 chasing 470 with JUST 3 batsmen crossing 30 (KL 149, Pant 114 odd and Rahane 37 if I am not wrong).

England is so not out of the game yet.

Had the pitch started to go up and down, then yes.

But it's still a very very good track for now.

India should focus on getting to 250 first...then 300.

Yes oval is like a typical nz wicket which just gets better for batting as the match progresses. Anything less than 350 and England are still in the game. Ideally we need to bat till the last 1 hour of the day and insert England in with a target of about 350 odd.

 

[PakLFC]

Where you're seeing the weather report because BBC and Met office are showing no chance of rain forecast.

Saw it some days back when googling it. Perhaps it's changed now like the weather.

 

[OMB]

Title of highlights seem to little baised .

Probably you mean inaccurate as it was clearly India's day yesterday. Could have been 120 all out lol