India and England deadlocked in Lord’s thriller: Day 3 of grit, resilience, and drama

When day three began at the Lord’s Cricket Ground, there was not much to separate India and England. The hosts had picked up three wickets, but with KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant looking largely untroubled, India had more than enough firepower to overhaul England’s total. And with only a handful of minutes left on the clock on day three, that metaphorical observation became the literal conclusion. England may have ended the day a couple of runs ahead, but this game was nip-and-tuck throughout Saturday.

Late Drama and heated Exchanges

It bubbled over at the fag end too, with England somehow ensuring just one Jasprit Bumrah over was bowled before stumps. India did not take very kindly to Zak Crawley’s antics, and the words that were exchanged, often between India captain Shubman Gill and Crawley - which included an expletive-filled gesture that might warrant a visit to the Match Referee’s room for Gill - will only fuel the fire further.

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Prior to that box-office finish, though, day three was one of attrition. India resisted and resisted and then resisted some more, eventually leveling England’s score. Rahul, who had returned unbeaten on Friday, was the protagonist for the first half of Saturday too, crafting his way to another controlled and excellent hundred at Lord’s.

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India’s resilient batting display

Pant, battling a hand injury that prevented him from keeping wicket for much of the first innings (and that event-riddled six-minute stretch at the end of day three), also showed considerable restraint, ensuring India had a solid foundation to build upon.

Both of them, however, let down their guard either side of lunch, and that gave England a foothold. Pant was the first to fall, getting caught out by a moment of Ben Stokes brilliance on the stroke of lunch. Although it must be added that Pant, wanting to get Rahul on strike as the latter was nearing a hundred, may have been better-off avoiding that risk altogether. Not to mention his slightly lackadaisical running.

Rahul did reach his 10th Test century (and second in five digs at Lord’s) a little after the interval, but when he departed bang on 100, India’s score read 254-5, still 133 adrift of England’s total. And that is when one of India’s most debated departments aka the lower middle order, turned up.

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There was a lot of hue and cry after Headingley, with India collapsing in both innings and ceding the initiative to England. There was even greater chatter when India opted to strengthen their batting (in theory, at the cost of bowling penetration). But all of those critics were answered as India cruised to victory in Birmingham, and three days in north-west London have only thrown further weight behind India’s decision.

Ravindra Jadeja, so often India’s crisis man, absorbed pressure and kept things ticking. He was dismissed on 72 and that led to another one of those mini-collapses India would ideally want to avoid. But his knock ensured they had all but wiped out the arrears.

Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar, the two beneficiaries from India’s change in tack post Headingley, also contributed well. Neither made a fifty, but the 53 runs they combined for, plus the extra time England had to spend on the field, could yet prove critical in what has effectively become a one-innings showdown.

A bit of that was also due to England seemingly running out of ideas. Ever since the Brendan McCullum-Stokes axis was formed, they have shown a proclivity for short bowling, and when bowlers like Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue and Mark Wood are part of the setup, it makes sense too.

But that also means the opposition has more than an inkling about their plans. And on pitches that do not offer a great deal of pace and bounce, or any consistent swing/seam movement, they are often guilty of letting the game meander once their short-ball barrage has been nullified, as has been the case on more than one occasion this series.

The sole spinner in the Bazball era has generally been trusted a lot more than when Joe Root was captain. But on day three, England probably delayed the introduction of Shoaib Bashir. While Pant being at the crease may have played a part, that felt like a missed opportunity, given Bashir then removed a very well-set Rahul.

As this series progresses, that is perhaps an area that England will really have to be careful about – of not letting India in through periods of uninspired bowling. Having Archer back in the fold may have added X-Factor to their bowling attack and given them an edge, as was evident towards the end of day three. But it does also feel like England run out of ideas quicker than India, and that they also seem to take longer than the visitors to hatch something new. Plus, the small matter that they lack a Bumrah in their line-up.

And this Indian team, through a combination of flatter pitches and increased application, have shown more resolve and more gumption to outlast whatever England throw at them. Which is what they did on day three at Lord’s, and which has now given them an opportunity to set the game up.

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A blockbuster finish awaits

England, meanwhile, will feel that that burst in the final hour has provided them with the chance to act as the protagonists again. And they will likely come hard at India on Sunday because, well, that four-letter word starting with D and ending with W, with R and A in between, does not seem to exist in their dictionary.

All of which leads into two very intriguing days of Test cricket. Between two sides that do not want to give the other an inch, and of course, between two teams that, until four minutes before the end of day three, had absolutely nothing separating them, and will remain deadlocked before it possibly swings one way on Monday.