Mohali: In the recent past India’s lower-order has laid the foundation of many an important win. But on the third day of the third cricket Test against England, they made the most telling contribution of 214 runs to put India in a position of command at the PCA Stadium here Monday. India finished with a lead of 134 runs and by close had put England on the mat claiming four wickets with the visitors, still 56 runs behind.
Ravichandran Ashwin (72, 113b, 11×4), Ravindra Jadeja (90, 170b, 10×4, 1×6) and Jayant Yadav (55, 141b, 5×4) took the game by its head and turned it around completely much to the discomfiture of England skipper Alastair Cook and his bowlers. This was the first occasion in the history of Indian Test cricket that No. 7, 8 and 9 had got fifty-plus scores and it could not have come at a better time.
All the three, Ashwin, Jadeja and Jayant batted with responsibility and at the same time, whenever the opportunity arrived, showed flair. They did not attempt anything out of the ordinary and were just content to keep the scoreboard ticking over. With every run, they rang England’s death knell. Ashwin and Jadeja put on 97 for the seventh wicket and then Jayant and Jadeja another 80 for the eighth as the England bowlers toiled without proper planning.
Cook’s captaincy had a number of weird whirls. He started the day giving Moeen Ali two overs when a James Anderson or a Ben Stokes (5/73) would have been a better option. The moment Stokes came in, he lured Ashwin into a drive off a wide half-volley and Jos Buttler gleefully accepted the catch at point.
England might have thought of going through the Indian tail quickly but Jayant frustrated them. It was not dour defence though, two straight drives off Anderson in the same over, displayed his potential as a batsman. Jadeja, meanwhile reached his third 50 in Tests and celebrated in his usual swordsman way. One was waiting with baited breath as to how he would celebrate his 100, but that did not come about. However, his talent was evident when in one Chris Woakes over he hit four boundaries.
It was this sudden aggression that however, saw him miss out on a well-deserved maiden ton. He tried to hit Adil Rashid (4/118) over long-on but with the ball taking on the toe-end of the bat, he holed out to Woakes patrolling the boundary.
England started with Joe Root and Cook as Haseeb Hameed is yet to recover from his finger injury sustained in the first innings. Cook had a torrid time, before Ashwin (3/19) ended his misery getting one to squeeze between bat and pad. Ali, promoted to No. 3 (it means he has now batted at every position from No.1 to No.9 for England) was deceived in the air by Ashwin and could only limply lift the ball down Jayant’s throat running a few steps back from mid-on. Jayant (1/12) continued to surprise as he had Jonny Bairstow caught behind low down by Parthiv Patel behind the stumps – a catch even the England wicket-keeper would applaud considering the degree of difficulty. And then Virat Kohli played a masterstroke bringing back Ashwin late in the day and the offie promptly responded having Stokes LBW. This time, it was Kohli’s turn to do ‘the silence please’ sign.
Jadeja all praise for hosts’ lower-order contributions
All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja said Monday that India’s lower-order batting has been more than useful against England.
India’s lower-order batting has contributed crucial runs against England in the series so far and exhibited their usefulness in the ongoing third Test at Mohali.
India were 204/6 at one stage in response to England’s first innings score of 283. But Ravichandran Ashwin, Jadeja’s best ever Test score and Jayant Yadav’s handy contributions pulled India to 417, a lead of 134 runs.
“If the lower-order contributes well, then it’s a plus point for every team and it’s a good sign for us that all have contributed well till now,” Jadeja told reporters after the day’s action.
“In Test cricket it all depends on the situation, if your team are in good position then obviously the opposition feels the pressure and hence everything looks good then,” he added.
Commenting on the batting, off-spinner Jayant Yadav, who scored his maiden fifty said that his confidence has grown with this innings. “Really enjoyed getting my maiden Test fifty. Really enjoyed batting with Jadeja. Definitely the confidence has grown with the wickets and the runs. If I bat well, I can feel it in my bowling,” Yadav, who also picked up one wicket in the second innings said after the day’s play.
“The best thing about this team are they didn’t make me feel I was playing for the first time. I didn’t feel out of place in the dressing room. They shared experiences with me that has been of great help,” he added.
