Nottingham: All-rounder Hardik Pandya’s (5/28) maiden Test five-wicket haul broke the back of English batting line-up as the hosts were bundled out for 161 in their first innings against India in the third Test of the five-match rubber at the Trent Bridge here, Sunday.
India rode on a brilliant bowling display as the entire England batsmen were wrapped after they added just 115 runs in the second session of the second day.
Replying to India’s first innings total of 329, England made a decent start reaching 46 for no loss at lunch. But the Indian bowlers came all guns blazing in the post lunch session to hand their side a 168-run lead.
England openers Alastair Cook (29) and Keaton Jennings (20) put the hosts in a strong position at lunch. However, Ishant Sharma (2/32) removed Cook soon after the lunch before Jasprit Bumrah (2/37) got rid of Jennings in the first ball of the next over. Ishant then removed Ollie Pope before Pandya came into play when he dismissed opposition skipper Joe Root. England kept on losing wickets to be reduced to 128/9.
Jos Buttler (39, 32b, 3×4, 2×6) tried to make amends with some power-hitting towards the end, adding 33 runs for the final wicket with James Anderson, before getting out off a Bumrah delivery.
Rishabh Pant was brilliant behind the stumps as he became only the fourth Indian stumper to take five catches on Test debut, after Naren Tamhane (vs Pakistan, 1955), Kiran More (vs England, 1986) and Naman Ojha (vs Sri Lanka, 2015).
Earlier, resuming the play at 307 for six, overnight batsman Pant (24), along with Ravichandran Ashwin, added 16 runs before the debutant got out off a Stuart Broad (3/72) delivery. Pant’s departure led a dramatic tail-enders’ collapse as India were bundled out for 329.