England's Winter of Cricket 2020/21

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Rum sort of field for Nadeem to Sibley...two short covers ???

Not noted for getting caught there , is he ? Strange theory...

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:Jofra’s first spell in Asia, or any cricket, for months on end...

Gun

Great start providing by him for the spinners

Probably fair to say that Archer's Test Match bowling efforts , since his initial excellent first series against Australia , have been a little disappointing. But his bowling today has seen a huge improvement - aggressive without going silly with the short stuff ; made them play enough and mixed it up nicely

More of that please.

I would have kept Archer on there for another over or two...

eirebilly wrote:I would have kept Archer on there for another over or two...

Think Root is going to err on the side of caution when it comes to possibly overworking his fast bowlers. Might be a few very short bursts , in these hot conditions. Will probably want to mix up pace with his spin bowlers rather than have prolonged periods of dual spin , at least for now. And especially with Pujara at the crease.

Bess getting some nice turn...he's made a pretty good start today.

Dom Besshan Bedi.

He may do alfie but i though that Archer was looking threatening so another over or two was not over working him.

Great catch Ollie Pope, Kohli gone

Dom Bess gets the great Virat Kohli, been bowling well.

And Bess has got Kohli

The big fish , for just 11 ...classic off spinner's dismissal , nice catch by Pope at short leg.

England right on top here...

What is the follow on target, 328?

This is a very encouraging start. Archer's first spell was magnificent, and Anderson's getting plenty from the surface.

Hmm. Jimmy kicking up dust and got that ball leaping at Rahane...

Agree with the Comms England might have had another close catcher in there , given the game position. India certainly under serious pressure as this pitch looks as if it's going to get quite tricky as the match wears on.

Follow on is at 378 , eirebilly.

Wow, another stunning catch. That's world-class from Root. England in dreamland.

What the hell was that, magnificent catch. Rahane didn't look comfortable at all, was inches away from giving Burns a chance two balls earlier.

Joe Root can walk on water at the moment

Super catch and India are four down ! This is the stuff of dreams for the England camp...time for a drink.

This is precisely why England batted on yesterday and this morning. Bess coming of age.

Still a lot of batting to come for India but they are proper under the cosh right now.

Perfect time to bring Archer back.

So the Pujara and Pant pairing now absolutely vital to India. Will Pant try his normal game and try to turn the pressure back on England with an aggressive approach ? If he comes out they'll really be deep in a hole...

Pretty sure Pujara will just bat. But he will be wanting a bit of support.

As expected , Root is alternating the seamers at the other end while Bess is enjoying himself...

What a game it is turning out to be for England! Absolutely dominating India here, India utterly on the mat!
Couldn't follow the game yesterday, but the England skipper carried on from his day one job, Stokes, Pop and the lower order did a fine support act. And for good measure, they made India toil on the field for 1 more hour on day 3.
Having put up a massive first innings score, England is letting the scoreboard do half the job, and then they are fielding with great intent! In no time India are 4 down, and with not much batting after this, very long way away from the follow-on target.

To be honest, there's not a lot left after these two. Sundar's only half-decent with the bat (though he played a good hand in Brisbane!), Ashwin less so, and then it's the proper tail.

But Pujara and Pant are both in good form, so will be tough to remove.

Well Pant wastes no time in making it clear he won't be deterred from playing his shots...boundaries from the first two balls he faces from Archer.
England won't mind. Plenty runs to play with. Pujara is actually giving the scoreboard more of a nudge than he sometimes does too... Probably realises that too passive an approach might just play into England's hands with the turn and bounce getting trickier.
Here comes Leach now...

India came in with intent to score 400 today, extend to 700 and then bowl England out! That is what seemed with Sharma and young Gill at least! The runs came in thick and fast, but also resulted in 2 soft dismissals of the openers. Sharma with a loose shot outside off, and Gill with an ODI like chip that was never kept down only for James Anderson to take a fine catch.
Kohli's wicket was well worked out by England, Root challenging Kohli to taken the open spots on the offside with a fielder well placed for the inside-edge at FSL. Having kept him quiet for long, Bess bowled that one wide for Virat to go for it and well taken by Pope.
And then a poor shot by Rahane, and an excellent catch by the England skipper who can do no wrong in this game!

Duty281 wrote:To be honest, there's not a lot left after these two. Sundar's only half-decent with the bat (though he played a good hand in Brisbane!), Ashwin less so, and then it's the proper tail.

But Pujara and Pant are both in good form, so will be tough to remove.

Ashwin's batting has slipped recently , but he used to be a very handy batsman. And I liked the look of Sundar in Brisbane - so I wouldn't write them off too easily.

Pant is clearly going to go for it. This might be fun to watch ! Two sixes off Leach but only just avoided being caught on the ropes...can't see him throttling back in a hurry...

Pant not holding back here against Leach...

Yep, Pant counter-attacking as we expected he would. Two consecutive sixes off Leach. For now England won't mind that aggression as it could play into their hands.

Pant teetering on the edge of reckless here! He taking Leach on is understandable with the footmarks and all, but he has to mind the field, no need to take on the deep fielder.

alfie wrote:

Duty281 wrote:To be honest, there's not a lot left after these two. Sundar's only half-decent with the bat (though he played a good hand in Brisbane!), Ashwin less so, and then it's the proper tail.

But Pujara and Pant are both in good form, so will be tough to remove.

Ashwin's batting has slipped recently , but he used to be a very handy batsman. And I liked the look of Sundar in Brisbane - so I wouldn't write them off too easily.

Pant is clearly going to go for it. This might be fun to watch ! Two sixes off Leach but only just avoided being caught on the ropes...can't see him throttling back in a hurry...

Yes, I liked watching Sundar bat in Brisbane as well. His first-innings century stand with Thakur got India back into that match. They might need a similar effort here.

Leach going at 10 an over... I understand scoreboard pressure but Leach leaking runs like this is taking a lot of pressure off these batsmen.

Nearly caught on the boundary again. Leach's figures taking an early battering, but Pant's nearly found the boundary fielder twice now.

eirebilly wrote:Leach going at 10 an over... I understand scoreboard pressure but Leach leaking runs like this is taking a lot of pressure off these batsmen.

Not really. They're nearly five hundred behind still ; and a couple of these sixes have nearly been catches. The question is : will he either force Leach out of the attack (not yet I hope) or cause him to lose his own nerve and stop inviting the lofted shot ?
England will happily give Pant 50 or 60 here if he comes out and leaves his side 145/5.

Very interesting battle of nerves...

Disagree alfie, Pant attacking like this will give the Indians confidence. Yes nearly caught but not caught and Pant has the ability to score big. Pressure is what got England 4 wickets, stick to that i say.

Pant keeps going for it and at the moment, he's connecting them well. The placement has been heart-stopping stuff though, he hasn't missed the deep fielder by miles couple of times. Very risky approach, has come off for Pant so far.

eirebilly wrote:Disagree alfie, Pant attacking like this will give the Indians confidence. Yes nearly caught but not caught and Pant has the ability to score big. Pressure is what got England 4 wickets, stick to that i say.

Unless he gets them to within 300 that won't happen, in no shape or form will India be gaining confidence from this.

Blimey dont sleep in when theres a test on. Fabulous from England!

Gooseberry wrote:Blimey dont sleep in when theres a test on. Fabulous from England!

...and Pant

Both Pujara and Pant bringing up their half-centuries. Root would prefer some control on the runs, though they have plenty in the bank.

Pujara on home tracks against spinners, is a lot more aggressive usually than when he plays overseas. Showing good footwork against spin, and so its not just Pant, runs are coming from both ends. Think Root would do well to keep 1 of Archer, Anderson or Stokes from one end rather than bowling too much of Leach and Bess together.

A top response from these two after England's superb start. Pujara a more classic approach, Pant a modernist by comparison.

A different test for England in the final session. Two set batsmen and a softer ball. If Anderson and/or Archer can get it to reverse may be the key to the next session.

Despite all the runs though, clearly England's session. India yet to win a session after the first one of the game. Completely outplayed in 7 out of 8 sessions.

Fifty to Pujara ...fifty to Pant.

Fine partnership. Very much needed by the hosts ! Score moving briskly ; which won't bother England much as they care more about how quickly they can get India out rather than what they score - at least at the moment.

Tea. 154/4. Only real question for Root at present is whether he continues to tempt Pant with the expensive Leach offerings or revert to seam at one end ? Ashwin and Sundar are both very competent : but this is the partnership.

Soul Requiem wrote:

eirebilly wrote:Disagree alfie, Pant attacking like this will give the Indians confidence. Yes nearly caught but not caught and Pant has the ability to score big. Pressure is what got England 4 wickets, stick to that i say.

Unless he gets them to within 300 that won't happen, in no shape or form will India be gaining confidence from this.

You don't think that India will gain confidence from this approach? I could not disagree more, you can see Pujara visibly lifting whilst batting with Pant. Pant is doing exactly what we all love when Stokes does it. Stokes counter attacking lifts an England side as does Pant's counter attacking. Cracking test match.

Pant doing a fantastic job against Leach, not only the runs but he’s seemingly disrupted his rhythm and he’s bowling some dross to Pujara as a result too.

Fascinating days play so far...
Stokes injured? No overs in that session

eirebilly wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:

eirebilly wrote:Disagree alfie, Pant attacking like this will give the Indians confidence. Yes nearly caught but not caught and Pant has the ability to score big. Pressure is what got England 4 wickets, stick to that i say.

Unless he gets them to within 300 that won't happen, in no shape or form will India be gaining confidence from this.

You don't think that India will gain confidence from this approach? I could not disagree more, you can see Pujara visibly lifting whilst batting with Pant. Pant is doing exactly what we all love when Stokes does it. Stokes counter attacking lifts an England side as does Pant's counter attacking. Cracking test match.

Not if you're over 400 runs behind with 4 wickets down, I would not be applauding Stokes if he was attacking in that context.

Well, that's where we differ Soul, i would certainly applaud Stokes for counter attacking if England were in a similar position. Counter attacking like this inspires teams in my opinion.

I don't think Pant's the type of player to soak up lots of deliveries in a defensive vigil. Stokes can do that, because he's a better-rounded and higher quality batsman.

I'd expect Pant to play like this in whatever position India find themselves, whether it's 50/4 or 500/4. It's certainly working so far.

So England resume with both pace men...slightly surprised as there's not much for them with this old ball at the moment . Suspect we will see spin back pretty soon , though not necessarily from both ends.

With this argument about Pant and his counter attacking : yes I think Pant is doing what he should - taking the fight to the bowlers. If he forces England to "back off" he's really achieved something. But if he gets out soonish England will not be too concerned about the fact that he and Pujara had a fast hundred stand.

At the moment the pitch is still largely OK for batting ; but there is turn and a bit of variable bounce for the spinners so they need to hold their nerve and keep probing for wickets rather than settling for containment. This will be an important session as both sides have to be ready to adapt their game to the changing circumstances.

If these two can keep motoring on for the next hour or so they'll make life a lot easier for the likes of Sundar and Ashwin. New ball won't be seen until tomorrow so Root will need to keep shuffling his attack...

I'd have gone for pace at one end, spin at the other, especially with Stokes unable (?) to bowl. Keep rotating. If England can only get one or two this session then the draw becomes favourite again.

Got the mix now , Bess looking the most likely to get a wicket at present. Think this should be the last over for Archer as he'll have more to do tomorrow. Would hope Stokes is good for a short spell ?

These two have batted really well in their differing styles

I have never seen that happen before.

Is it Besser to be lucky than good?

Bess gets the wicket. Filthy drag-down and Pujara pulls it, it cannons off short leg and loops up to a fielder. Goodness me. What a way to depart.

Pujara will be furious with himself and disbelieving of the circumstances. England have an opening.

Oh dear ! That is freakish...poor Pujara

Full blooded pull , bounces off a ducking short leg fieldsman's shoulder and rebounds to mid wicket ...

Luck can be a fortune . I did say Bess was most likely

Two lefties in now. Leach again to try that rough ?