And here is our match report from Ali Martin in Ranchi. I’ll be back on Monday, if the game lasts that long.
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Joe Root must be too weary to give an interview. Zak Crawley is sent out instead. “I said when I got out 300 would be a good score,” he tells Graeme Swann, “and I stand by that.”
A day that was shaping up as the last nail in England’s coffin has ended with the game nicely poised. And it’s nearly all down to the class and composure of one man. Well played, Joe Root. The Indians played their part with a spicy morning and a superb over rate, but they didn’t attack much and paid the price.
Thanks for your company and correspondence, and sorry not to get through more of it: when Ashwin and Jadeja are bowling, there’s not a moment to open the post. We’ll be back at 3am to see if England can add a few more runs and then find a way to dismiss Yashasvi Jaiswal.
This has been a good series for beginners and the morning belonged to Akash Deep, making a sparky debut with the new ball. He shot out the top three and reduced England to 112-5 at lunch. The Ranchi surface was doing all sorts and it looked as if 200 might be a decent total. But then the pitch mysteriously calmed down and Ben Foakes, a natural co-pilot, joined Root to play old-school cricket. The run rate halved, from 4.63 in the morning to 2.33 in the afternoon, and the wickets went down from five to none. After tea, Foakes broke free and soon perished, but Root was right in the groove now, cruising along in fourth gear and cashing in on the absence of his nemesis, Jasprit Bumrah.
In his quiet way, Root broke two records today. He dislodged Alastair Cook as the Englishman with the most Test scores of 50+ (Cook has 90, Root 91 now), and then pulled clear of Steve Smith as the all-time top scorer of Test hundreds against India. This was his tenth and one of his very best – because it came when the team most needed it, and when Root himself was out of form.
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Stumps! The day belongs to Joe Root
90th over: England 302-7 (Root 107, Robinson 30) Rohit, not usually a member of the funky school of captaincy, springs a late surprise by bringing on Yashasvi Jaiswal for some part-time leg-spin. Robinson thumps him for four and the day finishes bang on time. As Root walks off with his bat shyly aloft, the whole England squad comes out to applaud him.
89th over: England 296-7 (Root 105, Robinson 26) Robinson bears out the nightwatchman theory by playing out a maiden from Kuldeep. Still no sign of the new ball. Has Rohit missed a trick by not giving himself two goes with it?
88th over: England 296-7 (Root 105, Robinson 26) Akash changes tack, giving Robinson a bouncer, than another. Robinson evades both, waits for the full ball, and drives it for four. Root allows him to add a single off the last ball which brings up the fifty partnership – 51 off 77 balls. Robinson has scored slightly more runs (26 to Root’s 23) and taken much more than his share of the strike (51 balls to Root’s 26). Is he a nightwatchman in disguise?
“You’re right in that 1.2 degrees doesn’t sound very much,” says Andy Flintoff, “but remember that this corresponds (if I’ve got my sums correct) to a deviation of about 16 inches over 22 yards, which is almost twice the width of the stumps.”
87th over: England 289-7 (Root 104, Robinson 21) As Kuldeep continues, Root takes a single and Robinson takes a six. It’s a good hit, a decisive slog-sweep from outside off. England now have five sixes in the day, all from different batters, none of them called Root.
86th over: England 282-7 (Root 103, Robinson 15) Robinson glances Akash for a couple. He and Hartley have played their parts here, helping Root add 67 between them. Meanwhile a replay shows how Ben Stokes reacted to Root’s hundred. He applauded warmly, as you would, and then held up a crooked finger, as Stokes has done before as a tribute to his late father, Ged. Root saw this and responded with a crooked finger of his own. Each of them has been such a support to the other.
85th over: England 280-7 (Root 103, Robinson 13) Rohit takes Jadeja off and turns to the lesser-spotted Kuldeep. He is tidy again, going for just a single.
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84th over: England 279-7 (Root 103, Robinson 12) Root clipped Akash for two, survived an LBW appeal, clipped for two more and then drove for four. His celebration was restrained, like the whole innings. His 103 has come off 219 balls with nine fours. It’s his 10th Test hundred against India, something nobody has managed before (Steve Smith has nine). Given how much he struggled in the first three Tests of this series, it’s a fabulous achievement.
A HUNDRED TO JOE ROOT!
Root drives Akash through the covers to bring up his 31st Test century. And one of his best.
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83rd over: England 271-7 (Root 95, Robinson 12) Robinson, eyes lighting up for the first time, wallops Jadeja for a straight four. HawkEye shows that if India had had a review to play with, Jadeja would have got Robinson out in his previous over.
82nd over: England 267-7 (Root 95, Robinson 8) Siraj gets a breather after a fine spell of 7-2-13-2 and hands over to the other seamer, Akash Deep. He took out England’s top three and now he’s eyeing their No 4. Root plays a leg glance that goes for four, though he thinks it’s gone on the off side, making the commentators wonder if they’ve ever seen a batter think he’s got a leading edge when he hasn’t. Root adds another two with a clip. He is now just one shot away from a hundred: surely the reverse ramp is calling to him.
81st over: England 261-7 (Root 89, Robinson 8) Rohit, back on the field after a short break, opts not to take the new ball right away. Jadeja finds more turn than he has for a while and reckons he’s got Robinson LBW, but Kumar Dharmasena disagrees and India have no reviews left.
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80th over: England 260-7 (Root 88, Robinson 8) It’s still Siraj, whose average swing has been 1.2 degrees in this spell, up from 0.9 with the new ball and way up from 0.4 in his second spell. From what I dimly remember of O-level maths, 1.2 degrees is very little, right? And that is not how Siraj’s swing has looked to the untrained eye. Robinson keeps him out and finishes the over with a push into the covers, which Root does well to turn into two.
79th over: England 257-7 (Root 87, Robinson 6) Jadeja continues, with no drama. The spinners have done most of the bowling today – 47 overs from Ashwin and Jadeja, plus seven from Kuldeep. But the seamers have done most of the damage with five of the seven wickets. It feels as if England were right to pick two of each.
78th over: England 256-7 (Root 86, Robinson 6) Rohit gives Siraj a sixth over, presumably his last. Root can’t cash in on a full toss, collecting only a single, but after a single from Robinson Root adds two with a cover drive and a bit of tip-and-run, risky but worth it to keep the strike. Robinson calls for the 12th man, who brings him a drink and a pill. Robinson takes his helmet off, showing us his new peroxide hairdo.
Drinks: India back in business
77th over: England 251-7 (Root 82, Robinson 5) Rohit gives Ashwin a break after a long spell and brings back Jadeja. The ball slips out of his hand, producing another full toss, waist-high this time. Robinson hits it for four like a dad on the beach. And that’s drinks, with India back in business thanks to an inspired spell of reverse swing from Mohammed Siraj, who has taken 2-9 off five overs. But Joe Root is still there, and he can sniff a hundred.
76th over: England 246-7 (Root 82, Robinson 1) Here’s Ollie Robinson, playing a game of cricket for the first time since July. He can bat, but reverse swing is so hard to face when you first come in. Luckily for him, Siraj doesn’t produce another peach right away. Robinson gets a full toss, which he blocks, and then a length ball, clipped for a single.
WICKET! Hartley b Siraj 13 (England 245-7)
A ripper from Siraj, angled in, moving away, clipping the off bail.
75th over: England 241-6 (Root 82, Hartley 9) After three dots, Hartley again has a dart at Ashwin, drilling a straight drive to mid-off and picking up a single on a misfield from Akash Deep, whose mind may be on whether he will get another new ball.
Mention of John Cooper Clarke reminds me of Ben Stokes' emotional intelligence in handling Tom Hartley @TimdeLisle.
— Gary Naylor 85 (@garynaylor85) February 23, 2024
After his monstering in his first few overs, plenty of captains past would have treated him "like a sucked and spat out smartie". Not Ben - and he was right.
74th over: England 240-6 (Root 82, Hartley 8) The new ball is due in six overs, and it made things happen this morning. But Rohit may be wondering whether to take it as Siraj is getting plenty of movement with the old one, jagging it into Root and away from Hartley. He draws an inside edge from Root that might well have been an LBW for any other right-hander.
73rd over: England 240-6 (Root 82, Hartley 8) Hartley suddenly gives Ashwin the charge and lofts him over mid-on for six. Then he is pinned on the pad by the arm ball and given out on the field, but England review and there seems to be an inside edge. It might have been missing leg as well.
72nd over: England 233-6 (Root 81, Hartley 2) The wicket has encouraged Rohit to attack a bit more. For Siraj bowling to Hartley, he has two slips, a short mid-off, and no fine leg. Hartley survives for now, doing well to smother a yorker.
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71st over: England 230-6 (Root 79, Hartley 1) Root sees that reverse swing and brings out the reverse sweep. It’s off Ashwin, played calmly enough, and it brings two. He adds a quick single, trusting Hartley to cope with the last three balls.
70th over: England 227-6 (Root 76, Hartley 1) Siraj has suddenly gone from a non-speaking role to centre stage. He finds even more reverse swing now, in fact too much: Hartley, wafting outside off, is not nearly good enough to get a nick.
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69th over: England 227-6 (Root 76, Hartley 1) England are down to the tail now, well though Tom Hartley has played in his first few Tests. He and Root won’t have batted together before and it shows as they almost concoct a run-out.
68th over: England 225-6 (Root 75, Hartley 0) That’s the end of a fine innings from Foakes, who made 31 off his first 117 balls and 16 off his last nine. Some of the credit goes to Rohit for bringing back Mohammed Siraj and replacing spin with reverse swing.
WICKET! Foakes c Jadeja b Siraj 47 (England 225-6)
And now he perishes! Not playing a big shot but clipping a touch loosely to midwicket, where Jadeja takes a sharp low catch. That is a big moment.
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Hundred partnership!
67th over: England 224-5 (Root 74, Foakes 47) We have a plot twist. Ben Foakes has gone bananas! Out of nowhere he attacks Ashwin, playing a slog-sweep for six, a regular sweep for four, another slog-sweep for four and a dab for two. The six brought up the hundred partnership, only England’s second one of the series – and the first, with Crawley, also involved Foakes. He’s so good at playing second fiddle, and in this over he’s shown that he can also take over on lead guitar.
66th over: England 208-5 (Root 74, Foakes 31) Jadeja keeps Root quiet and rattles through a maiden.
“Top of the morning Tim!” says Kim Thonnger. “It’s a beautiful sunny day here in waterlogged Northamptionshire, and I awake to the dulcet tones of Dr John Cooper Clarke on the Radio 4 Today programme. Isn’t it a shame he did not become a cricket commentator? He has the finest voice since John Arlott and his descriptive powers would be second to none, with the added bonus he’s funny.” I’m sure we can find room for him on the OBO.
65th over: England 208-5 (Root 74, Foakes 31) Two more singles off Ashwin.
64th over: England 206-5 (Root 73, Foakes 30) A single to each batter off Jadeja, who persuades the last ball to keep low. Root, fully himself now after three tough Tests, is able to keep it out.
63rd over: England 204-5 (Root 72, Foakes 29) One of the commentators, Sanjay Manjrekar I think, is saying that Root is moving his feet not according to the length but the line – going back if the ball starts outside off, forward if it’s at the stumps. In this over it works a treat as Ashwin, for once, gets milked – three singles and a two.
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62nd over: England 199-5 (Root 68, Foakes 28) Jadeja continues, not firing the ball in at middle-and-leg as he often does, but giving it some flight and aiming more at off. Root picks up a single with a glide behind square.
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The Indians take the field and go into a huddle. The TV director finds Joe Root and puts up a caption showing that he has faced 154 balls, 113 of them dots.
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“I think this is really clever play from England,” says Stephen Nichols. “As Ecclesiastes says, and the Byrds sang, everything has its season. A time to sweep, and a time not to sweep; a time to bowl in the corridor, and a time to bang it in short. This morning on a tricky pitch was time for Crawley and Bairstow to attack, which meant we were 112-5 not 50-7 at lunch. This afternoon is a time for quiet accumulation. And I’m hoping when we bowl, it’s time for Turn, Turn, Turn.”
Tea! England manage a session with no wickets
61st over: England 198-5 (Root 67, Foakes 28) Just a single off Ashwin’s over, and England have a new landmark in this rollercoaster of a series: two batters have made it through a whole session. It was 112-5 at lunch, so Root and Foakes have added 86 off 36 overs, 51 of them to Root, who has been masterly. The over rate has been 18, the run rate 2.33. Old school!
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India are out of reviews!
60th over: England 197-5 (Root 66, Foakes 28) Jadeja pins Foakes on the pad. The Indians go up, the finger doesn’t, and Jadeja and Jurel persuade Rohit to review. It’s close but just missing leg stump, unlike the balls (and reviews) that accounted for Pope and Bairstow. India lose their last review, while England still have three left.
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59th over: England 197-5 (Root 66, Foakes 28) Ashwin suddenly makes the ball talk, or perhaps it’s the pitch. One delivery keeps low and comes within a whisker of Foakes’s off stump. Another jumps up at Root like a yapping dog and bites him on the hand. It’s possible that this score is already a decent one.
58th over: England 196-5 (Root 66, Foakes 28) Rohit, never the most attacking captain, has only a slip and a backward short leg for Jadeja. Foakes props forward and gives what would have been a simple bat-pad catch to forward short leg. By the end of the over, Root has added a late cut for four. He has quietly moved from third gear to fourth.
57th over: England 191-5 (Root 62, Foakes 27) Root, facing Ashwin, plays the most Rootish shot in the book. No, not the reverse ramp – the back-foot force, played with no force at all, just dancing feet and flowing hands.
56th over: England 186-5 (Root 58, Foakes 26) After seven overs for 13, Kuldeep gives way to Jadeja. He makes things more interesting to look at with his bandana and shades, but doesn’t make anything happen with the ball. Root plays out a maiden.
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55th over: England 186-5 (Root 58, Foakes 26) Ashwin, who has been coming round the wicket, goes back over. It doesn’t bother the batters, who take a single apiece.
54th over: England 184-5 (Root 57, Foakes 25) Root attacks Kuldeep for the first time, playing an off drive. Ashwin puts in a chase and gets a hand to the ball, but allows his foot to meet the rope at the same time, so that’s four.
53rd over: England 180-5 (Root 53, Foakes 25) Ashwin’s over is an instant replay of Kuldeep’s, yielding just a single to Root.
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52nd over: England 179-5 (Root 52, Foakes 25) Root, tied down by Kuldeep, gets out again with that wristy flick to midwicket. He and Foakes have now added 67 – I missed the fifty partnership, which came up with that late cut by Root off Akash just after drinks.
51st over: England 178-5 (Root 51, Foakes 25) Root lives a little dangerously again as he plays a sweep at Ashwin, gets a glove on it, and sees the ball hit Jurel on the boot. “Another dropped chance!” says Graeme Swann, possibly mistaking commentary for sledging.
50th over: England 176-5 (Root 50, Foakes 24) When you’ve reached a milestone 91 times, it doesn’’t make you do anything different. Root plays out another maiden from Kuldeep, who has been tidy (5-2-8-0).
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Fifty to Root!
49th over: England 176-5 (Root 50, Foakes 24) As Rohit brings back Ashwin, Root has to keep out a grubber. But he can see a gap at midwicket and a canny flick of the wrists soon sends the ball there. He goes to 50 for the 91st time in Tests, off 108 balls with just four fours. “He looks in control,” Cook says. “Real determination.”
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48th over: England 174-5 (Root 49, Foakes 23) Root is dropped! Dhruv Jurel, the new keeper, did so well in the last Test, but he can’t hold onto a tough chance now as Root goes back and glances Kuldeep. The signal is leg-byes, so Root misses out on his fifty for now. He remonstrates with the umpire, gently, with a big Rootish smile.
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47th over: England 170-5 (Root 48, Foakes 22) As the designated driver, Foakes is allowed to drive. Facing Akash, he follows that handsome straight drive from before drinks with a handsome cover drive, his first four off a seamer. He even thinks about a pull, but checks the shot halfway through and doesn’t get a run for it.
46th over: England 165-5 (Root 47, Foakes 18) Kuldeep to Foakes: no alarms, and no runs either. With 18 off 73 balls, Foakes is back in his role as the designated driver of the charabanc.
45th over: England 165-5 (Root 47, Foakes 18) It’s still Akash Deep, the man of the moment, bustling in. Root defends with a straight bat while reserving the right to play a late cut for four.
Morning everyone and thanks Rob. Root and Foakes “playing very well",” says Alastair Cook. And Root ris even closing in on his first fifty of the series.
Drinks
With that, I’ll hand over to Tim de Lisle for the rest of the day. Bye!
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44th over: England 157-5 (Root 43, Foakes 18) It’s starting to look like England may have been wrong to play so aggressively in the morning session, though I’m not sure anyone could have foreseen the extent to which it would flatten out after lunch.
Foakes dances down to drive Kuldeep stylishly for four, placing it wide of the stumps at the non-striker’s end on this occasion. After a confusingly good first hour for lunch (49 runs, no wickets, 19.5 overs), it’s time for drinks.
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43rd over: England 156-5 (Root 42, Foakes 14) Deep has changed ends to replace Jadeja. A nipbacker hits Foakes on the top of the thigh and flies away for four leg-byes. Jaiswal might have done better in the gully.
Foakes demonstrates England’s growing confidence with a nice straight drive that takes out a stump at the non-striker’s end. He was too good for his own good.
42nd over: England 151-5 (Root 41, Foakes 14) Kuldeep Yadav, whose figures in Rajkot don’t tell the story of a match-turning performance on the third morning, replaces Akash Deep. Root gathers another run with a gentle work to leg; that’s your lot. He has 41 from 90 balls, Foakes 14 from 58.
41st over: England 150-5 (Root 40, Foakes 14) A maiden from Jadeja to Foakes. Before lunch the run-rate was 4.63 per over; in the afternoon session it’s 2.26. Root and Foakes have played well, with patience and common sense, but it does feel like there is more to it than that. Either that or I’m in denial about the virtues of old-fashioned Test cricket.
40th over: England 150-5 (Root 40, Foakes 14) It’s hard to explain the contrasting behaviour of the pitch before and after lunch. Root and Foakes have added 38 in 15.5 overs with few alarms, and I don’t really know what else to say.
39th over: England 147-5 (Root 40, Foakes 11) Foakes feels defensively at Jadeja and is beaten. This pair are playing as straight as possible and with soft hands, so it’ll be interesting to see if any edges carry to slip.
38th over: England 146-5 (Root 40, Foakes 10) Root flicks Deep for two, helped by a slight misfield at midwicket, and then slashes a drive behind point for four. That’s England’s first boundary in exactly 100 balls, which sends a very confused message to the new breed of cricket fans.
Deep ends the over by slipping one past Root’s defensive push.
37th over: England 138-5 (Root 33, Foakes 9) What’s going on with this pitch then? It’s been almost benign since lunch. Root can create that illusion when he’s playing well, but Foakes also looks secure in defence. Jadeja finds Foakes’ inside-edge once in that over; everything else hits the middle.
England have scored 28 runs in the last 15 overs.
36th over: England 137-5 (Root 32, Foakes 9) The debutant Akash Deep, who took three wickets in a startling new-ball spell, replaces Ravichandran Ashwin. Foakes survives a hopeful LBW appeal after pushing at a big inducker; it was too high but that was an excellent comeback over from Deep. Any chance of seeing any nerves? Couple of half-trackers?
35th over: England 135-5 (Root 32, Foakes 7) England haven’t hit a boundary in almost 14 overs, which might be a record for the Bazball era. Jadeja hurries through another maiden to Root, who now has 32 from 77 balls. The pitch has been confusingly well-behaved since lunch.
34th over: England 135-5 (Root 32, Foakes 7) Root flicks Ashwin to cow corner for two, which takes him into the thirties for the first time in the series. It’s been an eye-catchingly chaste innings, with nothing resembling a risky or unorthodox stroke.
33rd over: England 132-5 (Root 29, Foakes 7) Make that 20 runs in 8.5 overs – which have been bowled in just over 20 minutes.
32nd over: England 131-5 (Root 28, Foakes 7) The pitch has done less for the bowlers since lunch. There are two possible reasons: the morning moisture has gone, and the ball is getting old. Either way, England have added 19 in 7.5 overs of <i>relative</i> comfort.
31st over: England 129-5 (Root 27, Foakes 6) A maiden from Jadeja to Root, who is finding the middle of the bat, mainly in defence, with greater frequency.
30th over: England 129-5 (Root 27, Foakes 6) Root works a pair of twos off Ashwin, then steals a single on the off side. He’s starting to look relatively – and I can’t italicise that word enough – comfortable, which is a double-edged sword for England. If he can manage risk on this pitch, India’s batters should be able to do the same.
29th over: England 124-5 (Root 22, Foakes 6) A menacing over from Jadeja, everything darted in towards Foakes’ front pad. He defends pretty well, though it does feel like another LBW might be in the post.
28th over: England 123-5 (Root 21, Foakes 6) Root has dealt in soft-handed accumulation throughout this innings. I was going to say ‘low-risk accumulation’ but nothing feels low-risk at the moment. He’s playing well, though, and Foakes has made a busy start at the other end. No boundaries since lunch, just ones and twos.
27th over: England 120-5 (Root 20, Foakes 4) Okay, I need to stop the emails for a bit because Jadeja’s overs are lasting around 90 seconds. In that last one, Foakes took a very tight single to mid-off. Or maybe mid-on, I’m not sure.
“Even I do not get the Bazball hatred from England fans,” writes Rajesh Balasubramanian. “As an India fan, I think Bazball worked really well in this series. It messed with Indian heads in the first Test. India batted too aggressively in their first innings, tried to out-Bazball England and ended up leaving 50-60 runs on the table. They then let England have risk-free runs in their second innings, and then panicked in the chase. Run-outs, dropped catches, scrambled brains were all outcomes from England messing with India. India did not play like the dominant force at home they have been for a decade.
“India is a beast to play against in India. Bazball twinkled out a win by unsettling India. England fans have this narrative that Bazball lost them the third Test. I would argue that it (and a worldie from Pope) won them the first Test. India’s spin prowess is immense, but Bumrah has really turbo-charged this team at home. The second test was all Bumrah. This series is alive and kicking only because England have had this wonderful new approach. I could do without the trash-talking though.”
All very fair points. Maybe I' cut them too much slack with the trash talking. But it’s the criticism of the cricket that I find most frustrating; it feels like England are expected to make the world’s best omelette without breaking any goddamn eggs.
26th over: England 118-5 (Root 19, Foakes 3) Hang on, I missed the end of Jadeja’s over, which started before lunch. Apologies. Anyway, we are where we are: Jadeja and Ashwin in tandem, bowling overs in the blink of an eye on a day-four pitch.
Ready? Ravichandran Ashwin is about to bowl to Joe Root.
Some things never get old
Seen that before haven’t we 👀1st session of a Test match #INDvsENG sorry @nassercricket all Ben could do was smile at that delivery from Jadeja pic.twitter.com/U2ixJqHL5L
— Alex Tudor (@alextudorcoach) February 23, 2024
Lunchtime reading
I’m off to grab a coffee; see you in a bit for the propreantepenultimate session of this Test.
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“On the hostility towards England, there is the team, which a lot of people enjoy, and the macho trash talk, which most don’t,” says Andrew Hurley. “I’ve never seen anything like Duckett’s comments (the more they get the better, we’ll chase them down, that India were afraid, his comments about Jaiswal etc) ; cricket (still, for now) has something many sports today doesn’t, and this macho, crude, cringeworthy nonsense encourages people to despise these players, which is a strong word, but I think that’s the effect it is having. A belief in an approach is a great, positive thing; reducing cricket to WWF in terms of pre- or post-match comments not so much.”
Yeah, I get that, and some of the comments have been cringeworthy. But I would argue a) they are often gauche or playful rather than macho and b) in the grand scheme of human failings, does a bit of breezy arrogance really merit such opprobrium? I think there’s a thundering lack of empathy. I can’t speak for anyone else but I know I lost the run of myself when I was recognised for the only time in my life*, so goodness knows how I’d deal with being an integral part of a team that has redefined the greatest sporting format in the world. I’m not smart or clear-headed enough to join the dots but I think it’s also related to expectations of masculinity. More than anything,
* There was a second time, a few years later, in the Lexington, when somebody walked up and said: “Excuse me, are you…” – a self-satisfied smile started to form on my face – “Gary Naylor?”
Watch: Ben Stokes’ dismissal
If only he’d planted the front dog and had a wipe across the line.
Ben Stokes walks and England have lost 𝗳𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁𝘀 already this morning 😩#INDvENG pic.twitter.com/VJRhSnAxIR
— Cricket on TNT Sports (@cricketontnt) February 23, 2024
“Re: England fans who are hostile to Bazball – think I covered that with crusties who hate fun,” says Will Vignoles. “In all seriousness, my theory is that it’s a mix of the usual distrust of the new, a misunderstanding of the whole concept and a sense that by importing white-ball thinking you cheapen Test cricket. Add in the extremely tiresome English cynicism about people being enthusiastic and I think that gets you there.”
Yep, that coverts it. This clip (which contains a lot of swearwords, please don’t have me sacked) also sums it up quite well.
“Morning Rob,” writes Guy Hornsby. “I hope no one’s got tickets for day three. Or perhaps even day two. England have got starts but seeing that ball that got Stokes makes you wonder if this is going to be a bit of a turkey shoot. If England can get up to 200, we’re in the game. But you wonder if the sweep is the best shot on this pitch. I really hope Joe can really dig in. If any pitch needs a fifty from him, it’s this one! I’m rubbing my rabbit’s foot.”
Lunch
That wicket means that will be the last ball of the session. The debutant Akash Deep leads India off after bowling a spectacular spell of 7-0-24-3. The scoreline looks grim but the pitch is already doing all sorts, so England are in this game. I think. The one thing I do know is that it was a blistering and breathless morning session.
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WICKET! England 112-5 (Stokes LBW b Jadeja 3)
Ben Stokes walks on an LBW. It was a vile grubber from Jadeja, and the moment he went back it became unplayable.
Stokes smiles wryly as he walks off the field, though the captain in him will be perversely encouraged that a ball has misbehaved that much before lunch on the first day.
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24th over: England 112-4 (Root 16, Stokes 3) Root plays out five dot balls from Ashwin. He has 16 from 41 balls and has evidently decided to bat time, even on such a capricious pitch.
“In answer to your question about why there is so much hostility towards England and Bazball, besides the many crusties who hate fun it’s surely that schadenfreude is so difficult to resist,” writes Will Vignoles. “I’m a Bazball apologist but conversely have greatly enjoyed watching India find new and increasingly humiliating ways to fail to win ICC tournaments for example. I’m not proud of it but there we are!”
It’s the level of hostility from England fans that befuddles me.
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23rd over: England 111-4 (Root 16, Stokes 2) It’s not even lunch on the first day.
Root is not out! It was bat first, just, so Root survives. Kumar Dharmasena strikes again: he’s been in sensational form in this series.
India review for LBW agianst Root! I reckon this is out. He squeezed it but if it was pad first – and I suspect it was – Root is in abundant bother.
22nd over: England 110-4 (Root 16, Stokes 1) On TNT Sports, Alastair Cook estimates this is a “250 wicket”, so Bairstow’s innings could be vital. But he’ll be thoroughly hacked off that he didn’t make his first fifty of the series.
“Clearly no-one told Akash Deep that his job was to give England much needed relief from Bumrah’s menace,” writes Brian Withington. “Wonderful opening spell.”
I suppose it’s fair enough that a man called Deep should highlight the depth of Indian cricket. With everyone fit, this could be their 2nd XI, and I’m almost certainly missing somebody: Shaw, Sudharsan, Patidar, Iyer, Sarfaraz, Pandya, Jurel, Axar, Kuldeep, Deep, Siraj.
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WICKET! England 109-4 (Bairstow LBW b Ashwin 38)
Yep, it pitched in line and the rest was a formality. Bairstow goes after a bristling cameo of 38 from 35 balls, and Ravichandran Ashwin has his 502nd Test wicket. I’m not sure the sweep is the best shot on this pitch, and it’s a real shame because Bairstow was playing excellently.
India review for LBW against Bairstow! This is close. He missed a sweep at Ashwin, bowling round the wicket. If it pitched on, and I reckon it did, he’s in trouble.
21st over: England 105-3 (Root 16, Bairstow 34) Jadeja beats both batters with terrific deliveries. I thought Bairstow had been dropped by Jurel – the reaction suggested as much – but there was nothing on UltraEdge.
Root lands a counter-punch to end the over, cutting for four with excellent placement. This is exhilarating stuff.
20th over: England 100-3 (Root 12, Bairstow 33) The new bowler Ravichandran Ashwin is blasted over midwicket for six by Bairstow, who is looking dangerous and has raced to 33 from 31 balls. You can usually gauge Bairstow’s mood and intent by the ferocity with which he chews his gum after hitting a boundary; he was chomping like a beauty after that shot.
19th over: England 89-3 (Root 11, Bairstow 23) Root moves into double figures with a deft steer for four off Jadedja. England are scoring at 4.68 per over, which takes a deal of courage after the week they’ve had on and off the field.
18th over: England 83-3 (Root 6, Bairstow 22) Heeeeeeeeeeeeere’s Jonny. He rushes into the twenties with successive boundaries off Siraj, a smear down the ground that Inspector Gadget would have struggled to catch and a brusque, beautifully placed drive between extra cover and mid-off. He’s in the mood.
Meanwhile, this is how to start a Test career.
WWW 🤝 Akash Deep!
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 23, 2024
Follow the match ▶️ https://t.co/FUbQ3Mhpq9#TeamIndia | #INDvENG | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/YANSwuNsG0
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17th over: England 71-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 11) Root is beaten by another menacing delivery from Jadeja. It turned and also kept a bit low, which the Indian commentators think will be a problem as the match progresses, especially for players who sweep.
“Watching that Root LBW appeal first ball,” says Saurya Chakraborty. “I had a thought - what do you reckon Scyld Berry would have written if he was out LBW first ball trying a reverse scoop? I do wonder if Bazball inspires journos to go as hard as the batters do…
“By the way, I have been searching for a headline which puns on this, but the Hindi word baazi means ‘gamble’, and so baazi-ball would be a perfect Hinglish term for Bazball.”
Bhajji-ball was great fun in 2001 as well. As for Scyld, I didn’t agree with his assessment but if anyone is qualified to make a statement like that, it’s him.
16th over: England 71-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 11) Siraj replaces Deep, who bowled a majestic spell of 7-0-24-3. His length was perfect, just full of good, and he moved the ball sharply back into the right-handers.
Bairstow gets his first boundary, opening the face to slash Siraj well wide of gully. A couple of inside-edges betray his modest recent form.
15th over: England 67-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 7) Oof. Jadeja beats Bairstow with his first jaffa of the day, darted in fron round the wicket before spitting away. Bairstow’s body language suggests a man who wants a piece of Gilbert Jessop, or at least a 35-ball 55, but it’s easier said than done.
“Wow,” says Andrew Crossley. “(Sorry I’ve nothing more interesting than that to say, but it’s an electric debut).”
There have been loads of great bowling debuts, for example Dominic Cork in 1995, but I can’t think of too many first spells to compare with this, particularly with the new ball. From memory Richard Johnson started his Test career with a spell of 8-3-18-5 at Durham in 2003, but that was against a weakened Zimbabwe.
14th over: England 64-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 4)
13th over: England 60-3 (Root 4, Bairstow 1) A quiet over from Jadeja, who at the moment is the supporting act for a debutant. By the way Root has started quite encouragingly.
12th over: England 57-3 (Root 2, Bairstow 0) Deep bowls the last ball of his sixth over after the drinks break. Bairstow, on the walk, defends.
The depth in Indian cricket is terrifying. We haven’t seen the like since 1994-95, when Australia A had a top six of Hayden, Blewett, Martyn, Bevan, Langer and Ponting. Australia A.
Drinks
Crawley has a word with Jonny Bairstow as he walks off the field, presumably telling him to give it some humpty. Crawley made a run-a-ball 42 that was scratchy at times, dominant at others. Those runs feel more valuable with every passing wicket over.
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WICKET! England 57-3 (Crawley b Deep 42)
Crawley whips a no-ball from Deep handsomely over midwicket for four. A Crawley cameo on a dodgy pitch? We’ve been here before.
But we haven’t seen many new-ball spells like this from a debutant! Deep has taken his third wicket, bowling Crawley with a jaffa that goes through the gate and trims the bails. Crawley was cut in half and ended up on his haunches.
There are some nervous looks, just in case it’s another no-ball, but Rod Tucker soon gives him the good news. This is magnificent stuff!
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11th over: England 50-2 (Crawley 37, Root 1) “The quote about courage that opened your preamble (03.18 GMT) calls to mind another, from Norman Mailer’s novel Cannibals and Christians,” says Darryl Accone. “It’s about the character Scranton’s bid for president:
One felt he had been spoiled when he was young by a lack of testing. It was not that he lacked bravery, it was that he had lacked all opportunity to be brave for much too long and now he was not so much engaged in a serious political struggle as in a puberty rite.
“This might be an analogy for English cricket pre-Bazball and now. Not given the chance to be courageous by Cook and Root among others, now emboldened to be swashbuckling but with some unfortunate side-effects. The shortcomings of Bazball on the field matter less than the immature bunker mentality off it, which can give the whole a pubescent air.”
I take the point, and I agree they’ve said a few silly things, but I find the level of hostility astonishing. All the ills in the world right now and we’re nailing people for giddy overexuberance?
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10th over: England 47-2 (Crawley 35, Root 0) As debut new-balls spells go, Akash Deep’s has been a gem: 5-0-13-2. He also cleaned up Zak Crawley with a no-ball.
Root is not out!
Yep, he was outside the line, just about. Sheesh.
In fact, this is really close... it was definitely pad first.
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India review for LBW against Root!
Root survives a huge LBW first ball after pushing nervously at an inswinger from the rampant Akash Deep. I think it’s outside the line, and there may have been an inside-edge – but Rohit reviews!
WICKET! England 47-2 (Pope LBW b Deep 0)
He’s out! Rightly or wrongly, I suspect England will be unhappy about that decision. Pope was on the walk and hit high on the pad – but the bounce has been uneven so far and I guess that one kept a bit low. The replay suggested it was hitting the leg bail. It was a brilliant review from India and Pope has gone for a second-ball duck.
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Pope whipped across another excellent nipbacker from Deep. I reckon height will save him but it’s close…
India review for LBW against Pope! This is getting a bit too chaotic for England’s liking.
WICKET! England 47-1 (Duckett c Jurel b Deep 11)
This time it’s for real: Akash Deep has his first Test wicket! Duckett pushes tentatively at a fine delivery and thin-edges through to Jurel. Deep beats his chest with delight; he has bowled beautifully.
Duckett could have left it, but a) it’s Duckett and b) it moved late from a full length. It was a really good piece of bowling.
9th over: England 46-0 (Crawley 34, Duckett 11) Duckett cracks the last ball of the over through the covers for his first boundary. There was enough in that over to suggest Jadeja will be a handful today, never mind on day three. In that context, this is a really good start from England.
REVIEW! England 42-0 (Duckett not out 7)
Ravindra Jadeja almost strikes fifth ball. Duckett tried to sweep a ball from round the wicket, missed and was hit high on the back pad. India reviewed Kumar Dharmasena’s decision but there were two umpire’s calls so the original decision stands.
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8th over: England 39-0 (Crawley 32, Duckett 6) Even Sunil Gavaskar, as classical an opener as we’ve seen, is high on life in the commentary box as he talks about England’s approach.
Duckett has been slightly starved of the strike, which has happened a few times in this series, but he has actually looked more comfortable than Crawley. He has also started quite slowly by his standards: he takes two from Deep’s over, which moves him to 6 from 17 balls. And now it’s time for trial by spin.
“This could be a fascinating contest, especially with England winning the toss on a sporting track, and India missing Bumrah the Magnificent,” says Brian Withington. “All results possible (other than a high-scoring bore draw?). What’s not to like?”
A 2am alarm call, but that’s about it. This series has been so much fun.
7th over: England 37-0 (Crawley 32, Duckett 4) We needn’t read too much into Crawley’s scratchy start; he struggled even more in the first hour of his astonishing 189 at Old Trafford last summer. (He also looked nervous as hell when he made all those single-figures scores in 2021, so nobody knows anything.)
Crawley has clearly decided to hit his way out of bother. After inside-edging Siraj through the vacant short leg region, he belts 18 off the next four balls! He hit three successive fours – straight drive, flick through midwicket, clip through square leg – and then ended the over with a disdainful clout over wide mid-on for six. Crawley, who has played a dog of an innings in so many ways, is 32 not out from 32 balls. He has the courage not to become ordinary.
6th over: England 18-0 (Crawley 14, Duckett 3) Deep beats Crawley twice more outside off stump, then finds an entirely genuine edge that flies wide of the cordon for four. If Deep had played 100 Tests this would be a seriously good new-ball spell. For a debutant it’s almost offensively good.
First Test wicket scrubbed off for a no ball used to be an English disease - recent examples inc Ben Stokes, Mark Wood, Mason Crane, Tom Curran, Saqib Mahmood
— Ali Martin (@Cricket_Ali) February 23, 2024
5th over: England 14-0 (Crawley 10, Duckett 3) Siraj has a big LBW appeal against Crawley turned down; too high. That seems to trigger a the-hell-with-this response in Crawley, who clumps the next ball down the ground.
He’s still struggling, but that was a decent shot. Duckett, by contrast, has been a) almost strokeless and b) immaculate in defence. It would be a glorious piece of trolling if he scores a 247-ball 41 today, with no leaves.
4th over: England 9-0 (Crawley 5, Duckett 3) Look, it won’t take long for Deep to take his first Test wicket. He has started superbly, with no sign of nerves, and is moving the ball both ways from a length. Crawley is really struggling to deal with his nipbackers.
NO BALL! Crawley is not out!
Akash Deep is denied a first Test wicket. It was a storming delivery, which growled off the seam to beat Crawley on the inside and send the off stump flying. But Crawley was told to wait around and Deep soon heard the siren of doom.
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WICKET! England 7-1 (Crawley b Deep 4)
Zak Crawley is put out of his misery by a spectacular delivery from Akash Deep!
3rd over: England 5-0 (Crawley 3, Duckett 2) There’s a deep point in place for Duckett, another moral victory for England, who thus gets only a single when he scythes Siraj square on the off side.
Siraj’s second over is another good one, with Crawley inside-edging a nipbacker for a single off the last ball. He looks a bit nervous.
2nd over: England 2-0 (Crawley 1, Duckett 1) Akash Deep is a relatively late bloomer: he’s 27 and only made his first-class debut in 2019. There’s a nice piece on Cricinfo that tells his backstory.
He starts with two slips and a gully for Duckett, immediately hitting a fullish length at around 85mph. The third ball strays down the leg side and is brilliantly stopped by the diving Jurel. Moments like that can be important in a low-scoring game.
Duckett and Crawley take a single apiece, then Duckett is beaten by a jaffa that snaps off the seam. This mysterious pitch is a test of England’s attacking intent, especially as they are batting first and have no frame of reference. They might need to sit in for a bit.
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1st over: England 0-0 (Crawley 0, Duckett 0) Siraj’s first over is mildly terrifying, especially for those who were hoping to watch some cricket on Monday. Crawley is beaten twice outside off stump and rapped on the glove by a vicious lifter. One ball went through a bit low; two or three kicked from a length. Yeah, this is an interesting pitch.
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Right, here we go. Mohammad Siraj, who outbowled Bumrah at Ranchi, will start to Zak Crawley. It won’t be a quiet start.
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Just over ten minutes until the start of play. I’m off to grab a coffee but will be back in time to watch the first ball hit a crack and fly over Zak Crawley’s head for five wides.
Turn! Turn! Turn!
This is Graeme Swann’s verdict on the Ranchi pitch.
I’ve not seen a pitch like this in a long time. My fingers are twitching: it looks like a dried-up riverbed. There are a lot of cracks and they are very, very dry; if the ball hits those cracks it could explode. It should turn early in the game.
Deep Dasgupta, the former Indian wicetkeeper, thinks it could be hard to score square of the wicket but that it will “play much better than it looks”.
Team news
Akash Deep for Jasprit Bumrah is indeed the only change to the Indian XI.
India Jaiswal, Rohit (c), Gill, Patidar, Sarfaraz, Jadeja, Jurel (wk), Ashwin, Deep, Kuldeep, Siraj.
England Crawley, Duckett, Pope, Root, Bairstow, Stokes (c), Foakes (wk), Hartley, Robinson, Bashir, Anderson.
Rehan Ahmed leaves India tour
It’s just been announced that Rehan Ahmed is flying home today because of an urgent family matter. Ali Martin, our man in Ranchi, says he received the news after the team was announced yesterday, so it didn’t influence England’s selection.
Rehan won’t be returning for the fifth Test, which means Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir are the only specialist spinners left in the squad. I wonder what it would take for them to hit their knees in front of Liam Dawson.
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England win the toss and bat
It’s on! (Okay, it might not be on, but England really, really needed to win the toss.)
“The first hour should give us an indication what the pitch will be like,” says Ben Stokes.
“Yeah we would have batted first,” says Rohit Sharma with magnificent languor. “The pitch looks a little dry, with a few cracks, but that’s the nature of the pitch here. We’ve gotta play well to win the game, like we have in the last two games.”#
🚨 Toss Update from Ranchi 🚨
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 23, 2024
England have elected to bat against #TeamIndia in the 4th #INDvENG Test.
Follow the match ▶️ https://t.co/FUbQ3Mhpq9@IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/6YpNexdnsM
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Interesting… very interesting
England have announced their team early, as is their wont. Ollie Robinson and Shoaib Bashir come in for Mark Wood and Rehan Ahmed.
India’s XI hasn’t been announced but we know that Akash Deep, the right-arm swing bowler who impressed enormously against England Lions, will make his debut in replace of the rested Jasprit Bumrah. That’s likely to be the only change from Rajkot.
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Preamble
I have most admired him, because he had the courage and the ability not to become ordinary.
Des Hoare’s quote about the former Australian captain Kim Hughes, taken from Christian Ryan’s glorious book Golden Boy, can be applied to – or at least adapted for – Ben Stokes’ England side. They don’t have the ability of a great team, which makes their courage even more admirable and their achievements even more life-affirming.
The backlash after England were hammered in Rajkot – parts of which were disproportionate, entitled, juvenile, ignorant and miserably lacking in both empathy and respect for an awesome Indian performance – will probably make them go even harder in the fourth Test in Ranchi. They’ll mess up at times, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming, and there’s every chance they’ll lose the series 4-1. So what: they’re playing away to India, the toughest challenge in Test cricket since going to the Caribbean to the West Indies in the 1980s, with a virgin spin attack and a malfunctioning middle order. The miracle is that it took until the middle day of the series for India’s superiority to become apparent.
Even now, when all logic says the series has taken a decisive turn, the hopeful voice, the one that thinks England can take this to a decider in Dharamshala, is still being given an audience. That’s purely because of all the extraordinary things they have done under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.
In a world full of uniform individuality, we should cherish every chance we get to watch a team of true originals. Trust me: we’ll never have it this good again, and whatever happens in the next two and a half five days won’t change that.
Right, that’s enough 3am sermonising. Let’s get on with the game.
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