That’s drinks (Elizabeth Ammon writes). The two calm heads of Shubman Gill and KL Rahul are rebuilding things for India — the partnership is 47.
Another LBW shout as KL Rahul is pinned by Chris Woakes but it’s too high and they’re not going to review, it bounced too much and flicks the top of the back pad. The next one keeps low and Rahul does well to jab his bat down on it.
Rod Tucker, the umpire is having an excellent game — he makes another very good decision (Elizabeth Ammon writes). LBW shout against Shubman Gill off Chris Woakes but Tucker says there’s bat involved and replays show he is correct.
Oh poor Jofra Archer — he’s down on his knees imploring for an LBW appeal but Ben Stokes doesn’t review, he thinks it’s going over. Indeed Archer pleads, then says to his captain — nah, it’s going down leg. He’s an absolute card is Jofra.
England’s highest Test totals903-7 dec v Australia, the Oval 1938849 v West Indies, Kingston 1930 823-7 dec v Pakistan, Multan 2024 710-7 dec v India, Edgbaston 2011669 v India, Old Trafford 2025 658-8 dec v Australia, Trent Bridge 1938657 v Pakistan, Rawalpindi 2022 Test captains scoring a century and taking five wickets in an inningsDenis Atkinson 219, 5-56 W Indies v Australia, Bridgetown 1955 Garry Sobers 174, 5-41 W Indies v England, Headingley 1966 Mushtaq Moh’d 121, 5-28 Pakistan v West Indies, Port of Spain 1977Imran Khan 117, 6-98 and 5-82 Pakistan v India, Faisalabad 1983 Ben Stokes 141, 5-72 England v India, Old Trafford 2025
Back underway with Jofra Archer from the Brian Statham End. There’s a massive LBW shout and Archer is pleading with the umpire for an LBW as Shubman Gill plays all round one.
Ben Stokes has decided to review it after Archer is begging his skipper to do it. The fast bowler is absolutely convinced it’s out but then fast bowlers often are. I think there might be some bat involved. Yup, there is bat — not out
Here’s a selection of the fancy dress on display at lunch…
That is lunch — blimey, what a morning (Elizabeth Ammon writes). A magnificent century by Ben Stokes to become only the fourth England player to take five wickets and score a ton in the same Test, then a double wicket maiden by Chris Woakes to set the tone for what should be an England series clinching victory.
Chris Woakes has ten wickets in the series — they’ve come more expensively than I had thought at 46.10 — but he’s been impactful (Elizabeth Ammon writes) and it’s very good news for him and England that he’s played in all four Tests and been absolutely fine fitness-wise.
Jofra Archer from the Brian Statham End (Elizabeth Ammon writes). The crowd are fired up and there’s a very good atmosphere here in Stretford. A jaffa second ball beats KL Rahul all ends up and then again on the third ball. This isn’t much fun for the India batsmen. The Barmy Army trumpeter leads the party stand in song — The Great Escape theme tune.
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And there’s an actual run which is met with a big cheer from the India supporters. The final ball of the over rises uncomfortably on Shubman Gill. We’ll get one more in before lunch.
WICKETS! Two in two for Chris Woakes
Here we go, Chris Woakes with the new cherry from the James Anderson End (Elizabeth Ammon writes). And he has a wicket with the fourth ball — the big wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal! Joe Root snatches the edge on the second time of asking — bit of a juggle but he gets it one-handed.
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Oh, and here’s another! Two in two! Amazing stuff — Sudharsan, who looked very good in the first innings, and that is catching practice for Harry Brook in the slips.
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It is captain Shubman Gill who has to face up to the hat-trick ball — five slips, a leg slip, close mid-on — and a big big appeal for an LBW, but it wasn’t a serious one! An eventful first over — India are zero for two and in big trouble/
WICKET! Carse c Siraj b Jadeja 47 (England all out for 669)
That’s that then (Elizabeth Ammon writes). Brydon Carse holes out and England are all out for 669. Lead of 311. And this could be all over today.
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Enable cookiesAllow cookies onceWICKET! Stokes c Sudharsan b Jadeja 141
And that is the end of a glorious innings by Ben Stokes (Elizabeth Ammon writes). He falls to Ravindra Jadeja for 141, trying to clear the straight boundary, holed out to long on. There’s no declaration though, and out comes Jofra Archer, but you imagine England will be bowling before lunch.
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Enable cookiesAllow cookies onceAnother record for England
And that is England’s highest ever score at Old Trafford (Elizabeth Ammon writes). Brydon Carse is giving it the long handle — back-to-back boundaries off Washington Sundar and the lead is approaching 300. This is England’s longest innings under Bazball in terms of the number of overs — the previous was in Multan when they scored over 800.
There’s a clear plan by these two Durham boys to crack on with things now (Elizabeth Ammon writes). They are playing their shots — it looks like they are heading towards a declaration at some point before lunch.
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Ben Stokes hits a six down the ground and with it, passes 7,000 Test runs (Elizabeth Ammon writes). That’s drinks, and England will try and push things on quickly now.
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Ben Stokes reaches century
Old Trafford rises in unison and roars in appreciation of a fantastic century by the England captain, to go with his five-wicket haul earlier in the match (Elizabeth Ammon writes). Stokes looked really quite emotional after he took the single to get to the three-figure mark. You can see what it means to him.
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He is well and truly back to his best — England’s leader and talisman, and what a cricketer he is. Only three other England players have taken a five-wicket haul and scored a century in the same match — Tony Greig, Ian Botham and Gus Atkinson.
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Ben Stokes very nearly gets out on 99 (Elizabeth Ammon writes), drawn into the drive and the ball only just misses the outside edge…
A first for Jasprit Bumrah
That is the first time in Jasprit Bumrah’s career he has conceded 100 runs in an innings (Elizabeth Ammon writes).
He’s found a bit of extra bounce from the Anderson End though and Brydon Carse has to get his hands out of the way quickly as the third ball of the over gets big on him, but he does take the Indian seamer for a boundary and then a three. Ben Stokes comes on to strike for the last ball of the over on 93* and gets an easy single down to backward point.
WICKET! Dawson b Bumrah 26
And that is as comprehensively out as you can get, Jasprit Bumrah has cleaned Liam Dawson up, bails flying (Elizabeth Ammon writes). A fuller length ball gets right through the Hampshire all-rounder’s defence and he goes for 26. Brydon Carse needs to hang around now to get his Durham team-mate to his century.
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Ben Stokes is looking at his aggressive best this morning (Elizabeth Ammon writes). He’s just played a cover drive that was so glorious it made everyone in the press box purr. Understandably, he held the pose for a while afterwards. The England captain is marching towards his first Test century since the Ashes in 2023 at Lord’s.
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Anshul Kamboj hits the stumps at the non-striker’s end after Ben Stokes sets off for a swift single. India send it upstairs, but Stokes looks confident and he is proven right — safe just before the ball hits the stumps.
Jasprit Bumrah bowled the first over of the morning (Elizabeth Ammon writes) and the good news for India is that Mohammed Siraj is fine to bowl the next. He had ankle issues last night and hobbled off the pitch but after a rest he’s okay to go again this morning.
Handshake between the greats
Joe Root appeared on Sky Sports this morning in the build-up to the fourth day — and there was a handshake for Ricky Ponting.
GARETH COPLEY/GETTY IMAGES
The England man overhauled Ponting, the former Australia captain, on the all-time Test run-scorers’ list yesterday by reaching 120. With his eventual score of 150, Root is now second on the list, 2,512 runs away from replacing India legend Sachin Tendulkar as Test cricket’s highest run-scorer.
Back to good old days for Ben Stokes — until his body let him down
If Ben Stokes does get to his hundred when play restarts (Simon Wilde writes), he will achieve a feat that has so far eluded him of a century and five wickets in an innings in the same Test, something accomplished for England only by Tony Greig, Ian Botham (five times) and Gus Atkinson, who achieved the feat last year.
It really is starting to feel like the good old days, except there remains a niggling strand of anxiety that in fact it is not quite like the good old days because Stokes’s body won’t let it be.
Mike Atherton’s day three report
Ben Stokes paused for a moment (Mike Atherton writes) to gather his thoughts and then shook his head and said, simply: “The absolute GOAT.” England’s captain has been asked about Joe Root so many times it was as if, in his pre-match briefing, he had nothing more to say, no more insight to give and settled on the shortest, most definitive thing that came to mind instead.
It feels a little like that writing about Root on a Test match day now. What more is there to say? He has done it so often, playing with the same beautiful rhythm and tempo, style and elegance, that it feels like every innings is a show-reel of a player who has reached a level of excellence attained by very few in the history of the game.
Good morning everyone (Elizabeth Ammon writes). It’s been hosing down overnight in Manchester but it’s dry now and the covers are off.
GEORGE FRANKS/PROSPORTS/SHUTTERSTOCK
It’s not particularly warm though and the India team are warming up with full tracksuits and hoodies on. It’s another sell out at Old Trafford today. England will be looking to press home their strong position, get a big lead and try and bowl India out later today or tomorrow.