For the third day in a row, England got off to a strong start at Lord’s. They began day four of the second Test against India with a 27-ru...
For the third day in a row, England got off to a strong start at Lord’s. They began day four of the second Test against India with a 27-run lead, and after 23.1 overs they had the three wickets they would’ve wanted most – KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane came together at the crease then. India’s score read 55/3 but effectively, it was was 28/3. The pressure was well and truly on. From having a near perfect day one, at the end of which a defeat seemed improbable, India had seen their advantage slip away gradually. And with more than five sessions of the match still remaining, they were staring at the possibility of a bitter loss.
But Pujara and Rahane, the two Indian players under most pressure to perform, saw a timely return to form. Timely for themselves and timely for their team. The duo batted together for about a session and a half, 49.3 overs to be precise, and added 100 runs. In that process, they kept India’s hopes, of at least avoiding defeat, alive.
As it happened: England vs India, day four of the second Test at Lord’s
Pujara had scores of 9, 12*, 4, 15, 8, 17, 0, 7,...
