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Drinks: England in trouble<\/p>\n
10th over: England 33-3 (Root 5, Brook 5) <\/strong>Siraj is straining so hard for wickets that he bowls a couple of no-balls. Brook continues to run towards the danger, leaving his crease to club four down the ground. It wasn\u2019t well timed but it got the job done.<\/p>\n After a scintillating first 10 overs, it\u2019s time for drinks.<\/p>\n \u201cThe draw massively flattered Australia in that 2023 series,\u201d says Phil Harrison. \u201cJust as, in the interests of balance, it flattered England in 2019.\u201d<\/p>\n I\u2019m not sure about this, though I realise it\u2019s fairly common view in this country. Old Trafford I understand, but the other four games were all really close and the last Test at The Oval would have played out differently had the series been level at 2-2.<\/p>\n I also find it hard to reconcile Australia being flattered by the scoreline with the terror I felt, as an England fan, for most of the Headingley Test when they looked set to go 3-0 up after three games. Not sure why but the 2-2 draw doesn\u2019t haunt me in the way it would have done in, say, 2005. Overall I have the fondest memories of those six weeks, from listening to Cricket<\/a> Et Al every day while walking my dogs at 7am to frantically trying to keep up with Ben Stokes\u2019 Lord\u2019s rampage.<\/p>\n And England won, so what\u2019s not to love.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>India review! England 27-3 (Brook not out 1)<\/p>\n A nipbacker from Siraj hits Brook on the pad and ends up in the hands of gully. Siraj goes up for anything and everything, and gets nothing from the umpire Sharfuddoula.<\/p>\n Gill goes the review, a no-brainer when you effectively have two bites. There\u2019s no inside edge \u2026 and the LBW is umpire\u2019s call<\/strong>. Goodness me. I didn\u2019t think the LBW was that close but it\u2019s another one to add to Sharfuddoula\u2019s important on-field not-outs in this game.<\/p>\n Harry Brook survives an lbw appeal\u2026Just. Photograph: Stu Forster\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.45 EDT<\/p>\n 9th over: England 27-3 (Root 5, Brook 1) <\/strong>Brook is beaten again, fiddling indecisively at Deep. England are all over the show, their brains scrambled by five sessions in the field.<\/p>\n \u201cRob,\u201d writes Kim Thonger. \u201cAre India allowed to take the extra hour tonight if the umpires think the match could finish before the close?\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.44 EDT<\/p>\n 8th over: England 25-3 (Root 4, Brook 0) <\/strong>The new batter Harry Brook is beaten by his first two deliveries from Siraj. His response, obviously, is to run down to the pitch to the third; he doesn\u2019t make proper contact and it dribbles into the off side.<\/p>\n England are batting like a team who have been in the field for five sessions.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Zak Crawley has gone and India\u2019s Bumrahless, Kuldeepless attack are rampant.<\/strong> He drove on the up at Siraj and snicked to first slip, where Karun Nair crouched to take a smart reverse-cup catch.<\/p>\n Crawley looked suspiciously at the pitch before walking off. I\u2019d need to see a replay but my first thought was that it was the wrong length to drive.<\/p>\n [Edit: it was definitely the wrong length to drive, and it moved away as well. It was a poor shot.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.34 EDT<\/p>\n WICKET! England 25-3 (Crawley c Nair b Siraj 19)<\/p>\n India\u2019s Selectors: An Apology.<\/p>\n Oh, Zak Crawley. Photograph: Martin Rickett\/PAShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.38 EDT<\/p>\n 7th over: England 25-2 (Crawley 19, Root 4) <\/strong>Close! An uppish flick from Crawley flashes past the diving Gill, deliberately placed for the catch at short midwicket, and away for four.<\/p>\n \u201cAfternoon, Rob,\u201d says Ian Copestake. \u201cThe only positive possible from processing the awful Diogo Jota news is the wish to send virtual hugs and good wishes to all others as we luckily experience this day. The cricket is a joy, as is the MBM, so thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 6th over: England 18-2 (Crawley 12, Root 4) <\/strong>Root is beaten, fencing at a back-of-a-length delivery from Siraj that snaps off the seam. He could and should have left it. By hook or by crook, England need to get to the close two down. With clear heads and an ageing ball they could score runs in industrial quantities at the moment. But right now they look suspectible to a match-defining collapse.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 5th over: England 16-2 (Crawley 11, Root 3) <\/strong>Root works Deep into the leg side for two and then one. There\u2019s plenty of chat from the Indian fielders now. Frankly \u2013 and I said as much at the time \u2013 they should have been doing this from ball one.<\/p>\n In other news, for all the emails calling me an eejit for suggesting England had a triumphant 2023 Ashes campaign. It was a joke. Obviously. But on reflection, I think it was a triumph. That word refer to achievement as well as victory, and the life-affirming brilliance of the series made it a T-word for both sides.<\/p>\n It was also a triumph for England to draw 2-2 after effectively being 2.5-0 down at lunch on day two of the third Test. I am, however, aware that the series was drawn, that Australia deservedly retained the Ashes and that winning draws aren\u2019t worth a damn.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 4th over: England 13-2 (Crawley 11, Root 0) <\/strong>This is a perfect position for India, who would surely have been happy with two wickets before the close. They now have 19 overs to pick up some bonus wickets and take complete control of this game.<\/p>\n A maiden from Siraj to Crawley, whose defence so far has been solid.<\/p>\n The replays of Ollie Pope\u2019s dismissal aren\u2019t great. It did move late but he was already trying to take it through midwicket from well outside off stump.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 3rd over: England 13-2 (Crawley 11, Root 0) <\/strong>Root defends the hat-trick ball. So much for Deep being wrong to flap his gums because everything was in the batter\u2019s favour.<\/p>\n \u201cThis \u2018triumphant 2023 Ashes campaign\u2019 you mentioned in the first over,\u201d says Edward Blackburn. \u201cWould this be the same one England drew 2-2 at home with Australia retaining the urn?\u201d<\/p>\n Yep that\u2019s the one.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.11 EDT<\/p>\n That\u2019s a poor shot from Ollie Pope<\/strong>, who tried to whip a very full ball to leg and was undone by the late swing. It took the edge and flew to second slip, where KL Rahul shelled a sharp chance before calmly grabbing the rebound.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>WICKET! England 13-2 (Pope c Rahul b Deep 0)<\/p>\n Akash Deep is on a hat-trick and England are in \u2013 here it comes \u2013 deep deep trouble!<\/p>\n Uh oh. Photograph: Scott Heppell\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.13 EDT<\/p>\n WICKET! England 13-1 (Duckett c Gill b Deep 0)<\/p>\n Ben Duckett follows an epic innings with a duck \u2013 but only because Shubman Gill has followed an epic innings with a stunning catch! Duckett pushed at Deep with hard hands and edged to the side of Gill at third slip. He swooped decisively to his left to take a brilliant two-handed catch.<\/p>\n Not a great start from England. Photograph: Scott Heppell\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.12 EDT<\/p>\n 2nd over: England 13-0 (Crawley 11, Duckett 0)<\/strong> Mohammad Siraj starts with a no-ball. There\u2019s some mirth in the crowd when Jadeja fields the ball into his face and then almost has a wardrobe malfunction when he lands. It looked like a problem with the elastic in his trousers but his modesty remains intact.<\/p>\n A poor start from Siraj with the no-ball, but that aside it\u2019s an excellent over \u2013 tight line, around fifth stump, and with a consistency of length that doesn\u2019t give Crawley the chance to drive.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 1st over: England 12-0 (Crawley 11, Duckett 0)<\/strong> It was on this ground that Zak Crawley famously hammered the first ball of England\u2019s triumphant 2023 Ashes campaign for four. Today he drives Deep\u2019s second delivery to the right of mid-off for four, a handsome and emphatic stroke.<\/p>\n Deep has a few words with Crawley, who looks slightly bemused that a bowler might have anything to say when conditions are so much in the batters\u2019 favour. \u201cTalk to the middle of the bat, mate,\u201d seemed to be the gist of Crawley\u2019s response.<\/p>\n After a confident flick for two, Crawley punches another gorgeous drive down the ground for four.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.01 EDT<\/p>\n Akash Deep will open the bowling to Zak Crawley.<\/strong> Three slips and a gully are open for business.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n It\u2019s KL Rahul\u2019s turn to address the Indian huddle.<\/strong> There are a maximum of 22 overs to bowl tonight; you\u2019d imagine India will want at least two wickets.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe cool part of SA\u2019s 637 for 2 in 2012,\u201d<\/strong> says Hari Menon, \u201cis that they were 1 for 1.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n You\u2019re right. At the time, as an England fan watching the mace slip away, I remember thinking how cool that was.<\/p>\n But seriously, how good was that South African team? Not sure they get enough credit for their brilliance between 2006-14, particularly in Asia.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>WICKET! India 587 all out (Siraj st Smith b Bashir 8)<\/p>\n Nicely done by Shoaib Bashir. He saw Siraj coming and slipped a carrom ball down the leg side for Jamie Smith to complete a simple stumping. Bashir finishes with figures of 45-2-167-3; interesting(ish)ly, only Woakes and Carse had a better economy rate.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 150th over: India 585-9 (Siraj 7, Krishna 4) <\/strong>\u201cShuddering at the thought of Root bowling to Travis Head,\u201d says Nicholas Way. \u201cMind you, also shuddering at the thought of Bashir bowling to him, unless they try the Pant trick from yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n Root did get Head at Lord\u2019s in 2023, don\u2019t forget. There isn\u2019t time to go into it properly but broadly the thinking is:<\/p>\n 1. Australian conditions\/balls have changed enormously in the last 5-6 years.<\/p>\n 2. England will bowl around 82 overs per day maximum \u2013 that can easily be split between five seamers with Root, who has a good record against left-handers, as back up.<\/p>\n 3. Australia will try to demolish any England spinners, and probably succeed, so the idea Bashir (or anyone) is going to tie up an end is fanciful. He might take 4 for 90 off 14 overs but he won\u2019t be taking 1 for 60 off 20.<\/p>\n 4. England\u2019s fourth seamer (plus Stokes) is more of a threat in those conditions than than their best spinner.<\/p>\n I think Bashir has done quite well this summer but he\u2019s still so raw and it\u2019s hard to see him being ready for an away Ashes series in a few months\u2019 time. The only serious alternative, I\u2019d argue, is Liam Dawson. Australia will try to marmalise England\u2019s spinner so Dawson\u2019s white-ball guile would be valuable. He\u2019d also be an extremely good Test No8, which matters in Australia because they will bomb Woakes, Carse, Atkinson and the rest.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 149th over: India 583-9 (Siraj 7, Krishna 2) <\/strong><\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 148th over: India 581-9 (Siraj 6, Krishna 1) <\/strong>This is the highest score by an away team in England since South Africa\u2019s 637 for 2 (yep) at The Oval in 2012.<\/p>\n Tongue tries to target the body of Siraj but keeps spraying it down the leg side. Unless that\u2019s the plan all along and he is disguising the fact by falling away in his action.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 147th over: India 580-9 (Siraj 5, Krishna 1) <\/strong>Siraj defends solidly against Bashir, four balls in a row, and then dances down to clatter a boundary to long on.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 146th over: India 575-9 (Siraj 0, Krishna 1) <\/strong>Tongue, hunting his first piece of rabbit pie in this innings, almost hustles a 90mph delivery through Krishna. He finds a way to keep it out, so on we go.<\/p>\n \u201cHi Rob,\u201d says Jazba. \u201cHighly disingenuous to suggest Root can bowl 40 + overs.\u201d<\/p>\n Which eejit suggested that then?<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.25 EDT<\/p>\n 145th over: India 575-9 (Siraj 0, Krishna 1) <\/strong>No declaration, which reinforce Dinesh Karthik\u2019s earlier suggestion that India\u2019s calculation was as much about time as runs.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>WICKET! India 574-9 (Deep c Duckett b Bashir 6)<\/p>\n Do India have enough? I\u2019m joking.<\/p>\n I think I\u2019m joking. The only certainty is that India are nine down because Deep has just mowed Bashir straight to long on.<\/p>\n That\u2019s two wickets in successive overs. India are collapsing with just 574 on the board. Photograph: Stu Forster\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.24 EDT<\/p>\n 144th over: India 574-8 (Deep 6, Siraj 0) <\/strong>It could take a while \u2013 a few days, perhaps longer \u2013 before we appreciate just how good that innings was. It was pretty much the perfect fusion of style and substance, enhanced further by Gill being captain and India being 1-0 down. Some of his strokes were divine.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>WICKET! India 574-8 (Gill c Pope b Tongue 269)<\/p>\n A meek end to one of the great captain\u2019s innings. Tongue digs in a short ball that Gill pulls gently to Pope at square leg. He walks off slowly, with Crawley among the England players running up to shake his hand, and receives a standing ovation from the entire ground.<\/p>\n A special innings from a special player. Photograph: Peter Cziborra\/Action Images\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.22 EDT<\/p>\n 143rd over: India 574-7 (Gill 269, Deep 6) <\/strong>This is the third time in his fledgling Test career that Bashir has conceded 150 or more. I don\u2019t think he\u2019s bowled too badly; he\u2019s just bowled a lot on a very flat pitch, much of it to a rare talent at the peak of his powers.<\/p>\n Deep is beaten by a good delivery before flicking two into the leg side.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 142nd over: India 569-7 (Gill 266, Deep 4) <\/strong>Tongue has five balls at the No9 Akash Deep, who survives the first four and whips the last through backward square leg for four. Nice way to get off the nark.<\/p>\n \u201cHoping India don\u2019t declare,\u201d says Deepak Puri. \u201cI really don\u2019t want to expose our bowlers to England\u2019s opening pair for that tricky 20 minutes before the close.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Josh Tongue will open the bowling after tea. <\/strong>He must have lost the game of Ccoc- Rock, Paper, Scissors in the dressing-room.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Shubman Gill\u2019s 265 not out<\/strong> is the seventh highest Test score by an Indian batter. Virender Sehwag, who is becoming weirdly underrated as his career recedes into the the distance, has three of the top four<\/a>.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Tea-time reading<\/strong><\/p>\n Matthew Engel\u2019s obituary of Wayne Larkins is as brilliant as you\u2019d hope.<\/p>\n It was some time in the 1980s. The details have gone hazy: it could have been any county cricket ground and any captain being asked by the press why they had lost so badly to Northamptonshire: \u201cWhat went wrong?\u201d The answer was equally terse: \u201cWe got Nedded.\u201d<\/p>\n A \u201cNedding\u201d meant being on the receiving end of a blistering innings from Wayne \u201cNed\u201d Larkins, who has died in hospital, while awaiting a heart bypass, aged 71. When he was hot, he could be the most thrilling batsman in the country. But demons of insecurity lurked beneath his cheery countenance and his 13 Test matches were a feeble reward for an exceptional talent.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Share<\/a>Tea<\/p>\n 141st over: India 564-7 (Gill 265, Deep 0) <\/strong>Gill caresses Root through extra cover for the 30th four of an aesthetic masterpiece. A bye down the leg side completes a bruising afternoon session for England: 31 overs, 145 runs, one wicket. Good over-rate though.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 140th over: India 559-7 (Gill 261, Deep 0) <\/strong>Pope misses a run-out chance<\/strong> when Deep is slow to react to Gill\u2019s call. Just one from the over.<\/p>\n I know it\u2019s an unfair comparison, but Bashir has figures of 1 for 152 to Root\u2019s 1 for 16. I\u2019ve thought all year that England should pick five seamers plus Root in Australia, except perhaps at Sydney, and scorecards like this only reinforce that opinion.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 139th over: India 558-7 (Gill 259, Deep 0) <\/strong>Root greets the new batter Akash Deep with a bouncer before almost sneaking a straight one under his bat. Deep was saved by a bottom edge.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s obviously a road and you can imagine a few of England\u2019s batters filling their boots on it too, particularly with India minus Bumrah,\u201d says Phil Harrison. \u201cBut this is a staggering knock from Gill. India were staring into the abyss when Reddy was out and the pressure on him at that point was intense. Takes some real strength of character to come through like this.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>WICKET! India 558-7 (Sundar b Root 42)<\/p>\n A wicket for England at last \u2013 but India might be the happier team because it was a jaffa from Root. It curved onto off and middle stump, from round the wicket, and straightened sharply to hit the stumps as Sundar pushed defensively down the line. Root celebrates almost angrily, as if he\u2019s had enough of the game meandering. But if Root can get the ball to straighten that sharply on day two, goodness knows what Kuldeep Jadeja and Sundar might achieve on day five.<\/p>\n Joe Root has Sundar out for a handy 42. Photograph: Peter Cziborra\/Action Images\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a010.39 EDT<\/p>\n 138th over: India 556-6 (Gill 259, Sundar 41) <\/strong>\u201cBrian Withington (over 131) is spot on,\u201d says Dave Adams. \u201cIt\u2019s classic ECB decision-making, and no surprise whatsoever that the galaxy brain of Key is behind it. Let\u2019s improve our Ashes attack by getting a load of bowlers who won\u2019t be going to Australia to use the Kookaburra ball. Genuinely can\u2019t see where\/how we take 20 wickets over there. Saying that, I\u2019m struggling to see us getting 20 wickets in this match, and we\u2019ve already got 6 of them.\u201d<\/p>\n With the caveat that I didn\u2019t pay through the nose to watch 800 play 600, I would politely disagree. I think Rob Key will eventually be recognised as one of the most important figures in English cricket history, just as Eoin Morgan eventually was. Morgan was criticised a lot more than we remember between 2015 and 2018, mainly for doing things differently. But we probably don\u2019t have time to get into a back and forth on that, not with this innings on a knife edge.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 137th over: India 551-6 (Gill 257, Sundar 39) <\/strong>A rank bad ball from Root is pulled for four by Sundar. Whether you agree with the balance of India\u2019s team or not, nobody \u2013 not even Roy Keane \u2013 can deny that he\u2019s done the job for which he was picked at No8.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Gill makes highest score by an Indian captain<\/p>\n 136th over: India 546-6 (Gill 256, Sundar 35) <\/strong>Gill turns Bashir for a single to move to 255, which makes this the highest Test score by an Indian captain. The broken record is Virat Kohli\u2019s 254 against South Africa in 2019; they won that game by an innings.<\/p>\n Shubman Gill goes past 250. Photograph: Scott Heppell\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a010.36 EDT<\/p>\n 135th over: India 543-6 (Gill 254, Sundar 34) <\/strong>Root replaces Brook at the Sour Overs End. The other end has a very similar name. One from the over. By their standards, England are rattling through the overs.<\/p>\n \u201cThis England team loves setting new records,\u201d says Steve Pye, \u201cbut I\u2019m starting to wonder what is the highest score a team has made in a Test match after being inserted?\u201d<\/p>\n That record might be beyond them: it\u2019s 735 for 6, Australia v Zimbabwe 2003.<\/p>\n\n