DAY 3 – TEA
Root overtook Dravid, Kallis and Ponting in this knock © Getty
A milestone-laden century from Joe Root further cemented England’s dominance in the fourth Test in Manchester, despite India managing a couple of wickets in the second session on Day 3. Washington Sundar picked up both to momentarily lift India’s spirits, but Root’s 38th Test ton quickly doused any hopes of a fightback. Over the course of the first two sessions on the third day, Root climbed past three legendary names to move to second on the all-time list of Test run-scorers. With solid support from Ollie Pope and Ben Stokes in successive partnerships, England marched to 432/4 at Tea, ahead by 74.
The spinners started after Lunch and the England batters continued to pile on the runs, with Root putting away a leg-side delivery from Ravindra Jadeja for a boundary. But the partnership ended on 144 when Washington got one to drift and had Pope edging to KL Rahul at slip. Another lovely drifter from the offspinner resulted in Harry Brook getting stumped for 3 as Washington led India’s fightback. Considering the success he got, India delayed the second new ball until the start of the 91st over, by which time England had extended their lead to 20.
Jasprit Bumrah bowled only one over with the new ball before leaving the field. Plenty of boundaries came along as England went past 400 and Root brought up his hundred by glancing Kamboj for a four. Bumrah’s absence off the field meant that even though he returned after a while, he wasn’t allowed to bowl before Tea. Mohammed Siraj had some concerns, hobbling off the field for a while after bowling an over as India’s woes compounded. Meanwhile, Root, having earlier crossed Rahul Dravid and Jacques Kallis, also went past Ricky Ponting on the list for most Test runs when he reached 120 just before Tea.
Earlier, England enjoyed a dominant morning session, with Root and Pope putting on an unbroken 135-run stand to take the hosts to 332/2 at Lunch – only 26 behind India’s first-innings total. Batting under clear skies and on a helpful surface, both batters brought up their half-centuries as England added 107 runs in 28 overs without losing a wicket. India tried several options, opening with Shardul Thakur and Siraj before turning to Bumrah. While Bumrah beat Pope a couple of times with probing lines, England were largely untroubled.
Siraj was expensive, India burned a review on a hopeful lbw shout against Root, and Jadeja missed a run-out chance – moments that summed up a frustrating session for the visitors as Root and Pope found regular boundaries. Root also reached a few personal milestones during his knock – becoming the first batter to score 1000 Test runs at Old Trafford and also notched his 104th fifty-plus score, edging ahead of Ponting to the second spot on this list too. Pope, though occasionally troubled by Kamboj and Jadeja, found ways to score through rotation and timely strokes as they ran India ragged.
Brief scores: India 358 trail England 433/4 (Joe Root 121*, Ben Duckett 94, Zak Crawley 84, Ollie Pope 71; Washington Sundar 2-30) by 75 runs.
© Cricbuzz
