Vice-captain Ollie Pope’s rearguard hundred in Hyderabad not only kept England in the contest but also pushed the tourists into 120-plus lead after Jasprit Bumrah’s magical post-lunch spell on Day 3 of the series-opening first Test against India.
Pope’s unbeaten 128-run knock and his twin partnerships with wicketkeeper Ben Foakes and leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed earned England a 126-run lead to force the Test match into day 4. Pope shared a 112-run stand for the seventh wicket with Foakes, who was dismissed by Axar Patel for 34, and then a 40-plus stand with Rehan to lead England’s fight.
England, who scored 246 in the first innings, finished day three on a fighting 315 for 6 in their second innings after bowling India for 436. The Hyderabad Test marked a historic milestone, with both teams scoring over 300 runs in each of the first three days of play. This marks the eighth instance of such high-scoring consistency in a Test match held in India, the last being witnessed during the India-New Zealand Test in Bengaluru back in 2012.
England’s second innings began with a promising start as openers Zak Crawley (31) and Ben Duckett (47) utilized the sweep shot effectively against the Indian spinners. Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin managed to induce an edge from Crawley with India captain Rohit Sharma taking a fine catch at lone slip.
BUMRAH’S MAGIC
Duckett then partnered with Pope to guide England past the 100-run mark by the 18th over. However, Duckett survived a close call on 39 when Jasprit Bumrah’s lbw appeal was denied, with replays showing the ball would have hit the leg stump. In the subsequent over, Bumrah dismissed Duckett by uprooting his off-stump, igniting excitement amongst the crowd.
As the ball began to reverse, Bumrah posed a significant threat to the English batters. Next, a delivery from Bumrah struck Joe Root on his front pad, prompting a failed lbw challenge from the batter. Root, who also showcased his bowling skills with figures of 4 for 79, fell for just two runs but became the highest run-scorer against India in Test cricket during his short stay at the crease. Ravindra Jadeja then joined the party to outfox Johnny Bairstow (10) with a delivery that did not turn, while Ashwin accounted for Ben Stokes (six) for the 12th time in Tests, leaving England in deep trouble.
