Never count England out. This was the tale of the session as India who seemed to be poised for utter domination fell victim to the English bowlers and at lunch, are 130/4 whilst leading by 273 runs.
They say that lightning cannot strike twice. Well, England’s James Anderson would agree to disagree, as the veteran seamer scalped two of India’s openers in consecutive overs with effortless ease on the third day of the second Test in Visakhapatnam.
Age is merely a number indeed for 41-year-old Anderson, one that continues to rise higher with time, just like his wicket count.
Anderson’s lines look stunning all across the over, setting the tone for the day by maintaining a menacingly tight line and angling in his deliveries at the batters. And it would be this seasoned discipline of Anderson that would reward him yet soon.
With the first two overs of his spell on the third day, Anderson dismissed the likes of both Rohit Sharma and the double-centurion Yashasvi Jaiswal, shifting the momentum of the match once again in England’s favour just a smidge more.
In the first over of the day, Anderson bowled an absolute ripper which just about seamed away just a whisker at the very last moment and crashed into the stumps, leaving skipper Rohit Sharma completely bamboozled.
In his next over of the spell, the third over of the day, Anderson stuck to his plan of attack, and angled one in yet again as he pitched a delivery up outside off, tempting Jaiswal to swing his bat and end up nicking one over to Joe Root at first slip, leaving India at a dangerous 30/2 within half hour of play.
Needing to recoup and fight their way back in, India now looked at batters Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer to help stabilize the innings. What might have been much of an ask given the batters’ recent form turned out to be the best outcome for India today.
Gill and Iyer looked in sensational form, smacking boundaries at will and taking on the Engalnd spinners, who looked dismal for time being.
Shubman Gill silenced all his recent critics, notching up a fine fifty, peppered with boundaries, to build up a solid stand with Iyer at the other end.
Just when India looked like they had regained control of the innings, out of thin air appeared Ben Stokes, to snap an absolute stunner out of thin air himself and dismiss India’s Shreyas Iyer and bring a blossoming 81-run partnership to an end.
In a rush of blood, Iyer danced ahead onto a fuller delivery from Hartley to sky one high, setting skipper Ben Stokes off on a run.
When it looked like it was not doable, Stokes, who was running in almost blindly, ran back about 25 yards from mid-off at the speed of an Olympic sprinter and then brought out a stunning to hold onto an impeccable catch at the end, garnering a spirited celebration from the England skipper.
Debutant Rajat Patidar was next to fall for just 9 runs as a low bouncing delivery off Rehan Ahmed caught Patidar by surprise, who ended up catching a bottom edge in an attempt punch the ball away in front of square and producing a fabulous catch from Ben Foakes behind the stumps.
The onus is now on Gill and Axar Patel to steady the ship and lead India to a huge total as they hunt to clinch one back from England and tie the series up.
At lunch, India are 130/4 and are leading by 273 runs.
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