Having chased the eight ball for two days in the ongoing Headingley Test match, India finally had some sort of a turnaround on Day 3. After ending England’s innings on 432 within 15 minutes, India showcased a gutsy effort with bat for the rest of the day. They are 215/2 at stumps, still trailing England by 139 runs.
Rohit Sharma (59) and Cheteshwar Pujara (91*) were the architects of the fightback. Having lost K.L. Rahul just at the stroke of lunch, they batted through the middle session with a positive approach. Pujara, in particular, looked far more proactive than usual.
Rohit perished in the second over after tea, after which Virat Kohli (45*) took charge. With the conditions not as threatening as the opening day, Pujara and Kohli hardly started to get into the groove. As the light faded, England had to introduce spinners from both ends. The Indian pair gleefully accepted the easy runs that came on offer.
The overhead conditions on Day 4 will be much better. The sun is expected to come out from the start of play. However, India will have to face the second new ball straightway, and someone like James Anderson, still wicketless in this innings, will want to make it count.
On the other hand, the new ball can go for runs as well. If that happens, by lunch, India will come close to make England bat again. Both Pujara and Kohli have batted positively in this innings, and should continue to do so. However, since Pujara is just nine away from a potentially career-saving hundred, he may take his time.
Nevertheless, if India can see off the second new ball with minimum damage and continue to hang in there, the Test match will head towards an exciting finish.
– Back both Pujara and Kohli to reach their respective milestones without much fuss. England will set attacking fields for the second new ball, which may allow them to find the gaps.
– Anderson is likely to come out with a different gameplan. On Day 3, he kept drifting on the leg and middle a lot, perhaps in an effort to attack the stumps. With the second new ball, he is likely to focus on his usual fourth and fifth stump line.
– Back India to polish off the lead and make England bat again. However, in order to get there, they might lose a few wickets as well.