Hyderabad: Ravindra Jadeja top-scored with 87 as India ended their first innings on day three of first Test at 436 in 121 overs, taking a healthy lead of 190 runs over England at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Saturday.
With the pitch showing signs of slowing down, India managed to add only 15 runs to their overnight total in the first hour of day three’s play, with Jadeja missing his century by 13 runs. For England, Joe Root was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4-79, followed by Rehan Ahmed and debutant Tom Hartley taking two wickets each while Jack Leach had one scalp.
Root and Mark Wood began the morning with eight sedate overs to keep Jadeja and Axar Patel in check. As soon as Leach, nursing a left knee injury, entered the attack, Axar feasted on his overpitched deliveries by striking back-to-back cover drives for boundaries.
But Root came back to trap Jadeja lbw with an off-break delivery which didn’t turn much, making the left-handed the third Indian batter in the innings to be out in the 80s. On the very next ball, Root got an off-break delivery from around the wicket to turn in and castled Jasprit Bumrah through the gate.
Axar went on the backfoot to cut off Rehan, but the leg-break delivery kept low to beat the batter on the inside edge and it crashed into the stumps, ending India’s innings. It will now be the turn of the Indian bowlers to put up yet another stellar show with the ball as England’s aim in the second innings will be to survive on a much slower pitch with unpredictable bounce.
Brief scores: England 246 trail India 436 in 121 overs (Ravindra Jadeja 87, KL Rahul 86; Joe Root 4-79, Rehan Ahmed 2-105) by 190 runs
–IANS