India gained a slender lead on Day 3 of the Headingley Test after bowling out England for 465. Despite sloppy fielding, Bumrah’s fifer and Prasidh’s key strikes kept India in the game. The visitors ended the day at 90/2, setting up a pivotal Day 4.
Day 3 of the ongoing first Test between England and India was thrilling and eventful as the visitors received a slender six-run lead after bundling the hosts 465 at the Headingley in Leeds on Sunday, June 22.
Team India capitalized on a narrow first innings lead by reaching 90/2 at stumps in their second innings, with KL Rahul and Shubman Gill unbeaten on 47 and 6, respectively, extending their lead to 96 runs and setting the stage for potentially Day 4.
On that note, let’s take a look at five key takeaways from India’s outing on Day 3 of the first Test.
Team India’s performance on the field was sub-par, as there have been missed chances not only that gave England batters lifelines, but also denied bowlers, especially Jasprit Bumrah, the rewards they deserved for the discipline. On Day 2, Ben Duckett got two reprieves after Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ravindra Jadeja. Team India continued to struggle with misfielding and dropped catches on Day 3.
Harry Brook got a lifeline after Yashasvi Jaiswal dropped his catch at gully off Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling when he was batting on 83 in the 85th over. A total of five catches were dropped off Bumrah’s delivery, including three by Jaiswal, costing the side crucial wickets as England edged closer to overtake India’s first-innings total of 471.
Indian pacer Prasidh Krishna gave a big heartbreak to Harry Brook by denying him a century in England’s first innings batting. After the fall of Ollie Pope’s wicket, Brook was anchoring the innings with a blend of caution and aggression in his approach. The 26-year-old received a reprieve after Yashasvi Jaiswal dropped his catch on 83. He formed two crucial partnerships with Jamie Smith and Chris Woakes.
Brook’s moment of scoring a century came in the 88th over and was just a run away from completing a three-figure mark. On the third ball of the ball, the 26-year-old attempted a big shot off Prasidh’s short-pitched delivery, but miscued it as the ball hit the top edge of his bat and flew straight to Shardul Thakur at short-leg. Brook banged his head and covered his face with disappointment.
Jasprit Bumrah has continued to deliver his best in the overseas conditions, especially in SENA nations (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia). India’s pace spearhead picked five wickets by dismissing Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Chris Woakes, and Josh Tongue to register figures of 5/83 at an economy rate of 3.40 in 24.4 overs.
With his five-wicket haul, Jasprit Bumrah became the first Asian bowler and the fourth overall, after Shane Warne, Courtney Walsh, and Curtley Ambrose, to pick 150 Test wickets in SENA countries. Also, the 31-year-old is the first Indian bowler to take 10 five-wicket hauls in the SENA nations. Bumrah’s Test tally in SENA nations stands at 150 wickets, including 10 fifers, at an average of 20.26 and an economy rate of 2.76 in 31 matches.
Mohammed Siraj complemented the efforts of his pace bowling partners Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna. On Day 2, the 31-year-old conceded 50 runs without taking a wicket in his spell of 14 overs, raising concerns about his impact. However, Siraj bounced back strongly on Day 3. The pacer picked a crucial wicket of England skipper Ben Stokes (20) to give Team India a breakthrough after Prasidh Krishna got rid of centurion Ollie Pope.
Then, Mohammed Siraj got his second and final wicket of the first innings by removing Brydon Carse (22), who was stitching a solid partnership with Chris Woakes to help England take a lead by surpassing India’s first innings total. At the end of India’s first innings bowling, Siraj registered figures of 2/122 at an economy rate of 4.50 in 27 overs.
As soon as India began with their second innings batting, the visitors faced an early setback with Yashasvi Jaiswal for 4 at 16/1. Jaiswal scored a century in the first innings, but failed to deliver in the second innings. Thereafter, Sai Sudharsan joined KL Rahul at the crease. Sudharsan had a decent outing compared to the first innings, where he was dismissed for a four-ball duck.
Sudharsan and Rahul steadied India’s ship with a 66-run partnership before Ben Stokes dismissed the former for the second time in the ongoing Headingley Test for 30. With this, Team India lost two wickets before the close of play on Day 3 and will need a strong batting effort on Day 4 to build a substantial lead and stay ahead in the contest.
