India 72-2 at lunch v England on first day of key final test
By Mitch Phillips
LONDON :India negotiated an awkward first morning of the final test against England at the Oval relatively smoothly on Thursday, reaching 72-2 at lunch as the hosts, leading the series 2-1, failed to take full advantage of overcast conditions ideal for their all-seam attack.
England's bowlers, without injured captain Ben Stokes or rested paceman Jofra Archer, ran in hard enough and extracted some good bounce from what has been a very batter-friendly wicket this season, but generally lacked a cutting edge.
Recalled Gus Atkinson was England's liveliest bowler and he struck in the fifth over as Yashasvi Jaiswal was beaten by a ball that cut back sharply and thudded into his pad.
It was given not out but Ollie Pope, in as captain in place of Stokes and who had a remarkable 14 unsuccessful reviews when leading the team last year, finally got one right as DRS overturned the decision to dismiss the opener for two.
KL Rahul, with over 500 runs to his name from the first four matches, looked relatively untroubled before trying to cut a ball from Chris Woakes that was too close to his body and succeeded only in playing on to depart for 14.
At 38-2, England and a packed Oval crowd sensed an opportunity but, with some weak sunshine replacing the dark clouds, things started to look more comfortable for the tourists, who need a victory to square the series.
India's number three Sai Sudharsan was very watchful in the first hour but started to time the ball nicely and was unbeaten on 25. Captain Shubman Gill, averaging over 90 for the series and probably key to India's hopes, was not out on 15 when the players went off for an early lunch after a shower arrived.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
44 minutes ago
- CNA
West Ham sign former Newcastle striker Wilson on one-year deal
LONDON :West Ham United have recruited ex-Newcastle United and Bournemouth striker Callum Wilson as a free agent on a one-year contract, the east London club announced on Saturday. The 33-year-old Wilson has had 111 direct goal involvements in 239 Premier League appearances, including 49 in 130 games for Newcastle, where he failed to agree a new contract. He has played nine times for England, scoring twice. "I'm excited to be joining a massive football club like West Ham. A club that shares a similar passion to mine, hard work, dedication and also I strive for success so I'm glad to be a part of it," Wilson said. Wilson moved to Newcastle in September 2022 and had his best Premier League tally of 18 goals in 2022-23, a season that also saw him feature for England at the World Cup in Qatar. He played in just 18 league games last term due to injuries. "He is a proven, experienced Premier League striker, with a great work ethic and a fantastic goalscoring record," West Ham coach Graham Potter said.
CNA
2 hours ago
- CNA
England-India Oval test heading for thrilling finale
LONDON :India ended a third day that ebbed and flowed leading England by 323 runs in the final test at The Oval on Saturday with the game and series still hanging in the balance. After Yashasvi Jaiswal's patient 118 led the touring side to a total of 396, England were set a victory target of 374 with two days remaining. Mohammed Siraj bowled Zak Crawley with the final ball of the day to reduce the hosts to 50-1. India are favourites to secure victory and draw the series, but England, who racked up 373-5 to win the first test, will still fancy their chances of completing what would be by far the highest successful test run chase at the south London ground. India had dominated the morning session as Jaiswal and nightwatchman Akash Deep shared a stubborn century partnership to frustrate a toothless England attack under murky skies. The home side's callow seam attack looked bereft of ideas and inspiration, and their sloppy catching continued. Jamie Overton removed Deep for 66 just before lunch with a ball that lifted sharply, but the England team and the majority of the spectators looked as gloomy as the weather as the players trudged off. The hosts removed Shubman Gill with the first ball after lunch, however, the India captain trapped lbw by Gus Atkinson for 11 and failing to get the decision overturned on review. Karun Nair suffered a painful blow to his hand from the next delivery which spat up off the pitch, and suddenly England and the crowd were energised. Jaiswal moved calmly to his sixth test century and second of the series before Nair, on 17, edged Atkinson to wicketkeeper Jamie Smith. Ben Duckett at leg slip spilled a very difficult chance to remove Jaiswal, England's sixth dropped catch in the innings, before the batter's long vigil ended when he slashed Josh Tongue to deep backward point. Ravindra Jadeja, who England had failed to dismiss in the second innings of any of the first four tests in the series, passed 50 once again before edging the second new ball to Harry Brook at second slip off Tongue. The young fast bowler snared Siraj lbw in the same over and, although replays showed the ball had brushed his bat, with no reviews remaining he had to depart. LATE CAMEO Washington Sundar then delivered a remarkable late cameo. He struck four huge sixes, the last taking him to his 50 from 39 balls, before he skied Tongue to Crawley to give the bowler his fifth victim and end a last-wicket stand of 39 that provided yet another twist in the match. Duckett and Crawley batted fluently with few alarms in the last hour until Siraj produced a rapid yorker to remove Crawley for 14, leaving Duckett unbeaten on 34. England have succeeded in several big run chases in recent years but they should be wary of history at The Oval.
CNA
5 hours ago
- CNA
Schmidt not tempted to stay on despite Wallabies beating Lions in tour finale
SYDNEY :Australia coach Joe Schmidt said he would be sticking to his plan to stand down next July despite his team showing some genuine promise by winning the final test against the British & Irish Lions 22-12 on Saturday. Robbie Deans was sacked as coach after his Wallabies side lost 2-1 to the Lions in 2013 but encouraging performances during this series, capped by the third test victory, meant Schmidt was faced with questions about staying on. Schmidt originally signed a short-term deal up until the end of the Lions series because of his desire to spend more time with his family in New Zealand and help look after his youngest son, who has severe epilepsy. In April, he agreed to extend the deal until next July when he is scheduled to hand over the reins to Queensland Reds coach Les Kiss. "I'm looking forward to Les Kiss coming in and taking over," the 59-year-old said when asked about extending again until the 2027 World Cup, which Australia will host. "I actually apologise to the players. A little while ago, I bit one of their heads off, and my son had had a bad day. I can normally separate the two things, but it does impact me when he's had a bad day. "I know that I've a short enough shelf life and need to be more present at home. I haven't been home for two months. "As much as I just think they're a great group of young men. There's other things that I need to make sure I tick off." In victory as in defeat, Schmidt is not given to hyperbolic comments about his team and he merely said that he had been impressed by how they bounced back after losing the second test, and the series, to a late try in Melbourne last week. He also gave a little insight into the thoroughness of his preparations after Saturday's match was suspended for 40 minutes due to a lightning warning in the area. That the Wallabies came out firing after the delay while the Lions were a bit flat was clearly no accident. "We had been warned that there might be lightning, so we had a little bit of a plan," Schmidt said. "We wanted to make sure that players kept moving. So we had different guys rotating onto the bikes. "We had four balls in the changing room that we've just thrown around just so they could stay connected, and the rest of the time it was really just trying to get us organised for the restart of the game. "The players stayed dialled in really well."
