England vs India Third Test Day 4 Highlights: Moeen Ali Double Leaves India in Deep Trouble
India's top-order collapsed as Moeen Ali struck twice, Joe Root took one wicket and Stuart Broad effected a run-out to leave the hosts tottering at the end of the penultimate day. The visitors will need to bat out 90 overs for a draw or chase down 333 to beat England on Thursday. Catch all the highlights here.
Moeen Ali was the pick of the bowlers for England, snaring 2/33. (Scorecard)
22:59 IST: Stumps. India are 112/4 and need 333 more to beat England on the final day of the Southampton Test. Rahane and Rohit are the unbeaten batsmen for the tourists.
22:35 IST: Alastair Cook has had better returns than expected; his bowlers have given him four Indian wickets, leaving Rahane, Rohit, Dhoni and Jadeja to bear the responsibilities of batting out a tough final day.
22:26 IST: WICKET! Moeen Ali strikes again as Virat Kohli departs. India are in all sorts of trouble at 89/4. England are sensing victory for sure.
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22:18 IST: Cook going for the kill. With 11 overs left in the day, he has brought back Broad into the attack. India are 87/3 with Kohli and Rahane at the crease.
22:09 IST: WICKET! Root came on to bowl with 14 overs to go and he produces a wicket. He has removed a well-settled Dhawan for 37 as India slip to 80/3. Three crucial wickets down and it looks like India might just struggle to pull off a draw.
22:04 IST: Virat Kohli missed out in the first innings, falling for 39, but he has got off to another start here. Can he salvage a draw for India? With Vijay and Pujara back in the hut, a lot of hope rests on him.
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21:57 IST: Commonwealth Games Update: India's wrestlers have won three silvers, after losing their gold-medal bouts. The medals tally continues to swell. Catch all the updates here.
21:54 IST: India are 73/2 after 26 overs. Dhawan has looked solid and scratchy in equal measures but with Kohli for company, he will be up for the fight that India face.
21:46 IST: India are 69/2 and have 16 more overs to see off today. Broad and Anderson can't keep bowling for ever and Cook will have to look at using Jordan and Woakes. Those two have still not taken a wicket in this match and India should be able to keep them at bay.
21:42 IST: Dhawan and Kohli have arrested the slide for now and are looking to offer some resistance. The pitch is still not too bad for batsmen and if the Indians apply themselves, they can hold on for a draw.
21:17 IST: FOUR! Ali pitches short and Dhawan pulls it away to the fence. Aggression from the opener as England's fielders start crowding around the bat. India 42/2.
21:07 IST: Dhawan and Kohli, two batsmen who have not had the best of series in England have been left with negotiating a dangerous phase. The Delhi boys need to get their A game if they are hoping of saving this match. India are 33/2 and still have to bat 28 overs today.
21:01 IST: WICKET! India are in tatters as another solid batsman departs. Cheteshwar Pujara has fallen to Moeen Ali with India reeling at 29/2. Things are slipping out of India's hands very quickly here.
20:55 IST: WICKET! Big, big blow to India. They have lost their best batsman in the series, Murali Vijay. He is run out with India needing to either chase 445 or bat more than a day to save the Test.
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20:45 IST: India are 24/0 after 10 overs. Both openers have been extremely watchful so far. They and the rest of the batsmen to follow, cannot afford to play any loose shots.
20:35 IST: India are 17/0 with Vijay and Dhawan looking to bat out time. There are almost two hours remaining today and England will be hoping for a couple of wickets before stumps.
20:31 IST: Indian openers Dhawan and Vijay have been very watchful against the new-ball onslaught from Anderson and Broad.
20:27 IST: Broad gets some extra bounce and Ganguly quips on air: "Things have started to happen." India should be very worried now.
20:20 IST: India have a mountain to climb. If they win, it would be a record; even a draw will need them to break their own record. And this is not a bad England bowling attack, led by Anderson and Broad.
20:17 IST: India will have to bat over 120 overs to save this Test; the maximum India have batted to save a Test is 109.4 against England back in 2002. Can MS Dhoni's young team do it?
Early tea has been taken.
19:45 IST: WICKET! Jadeja gets his third and removes Root. That's also brought the declaration and India need 445 to win.
19:40 IST: India's bowling has not been brilliant and Joe Root too has decided to help himself to yet another half-century, the sixth of his career.
19:30 IST: FOUR! Kumar strays in line and Root works him through the empty third man area. England 177/3 and lead by 416 runs.
19:22 IST: The lead has crossed 400. India have chased 400 in 12 Tests since 2000 and they lost 10 and drawn only 2. What are the chance of India saving the match here?
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19:14 IST: Barring the captain himself, the others, Ballance, Bell and Root have scored rapidly. When do England declare their second innings? Are they going to be defensive in their approach? England are 161/3 and lead by 400.
19:11 IST: FOUR! Cook slams Jadeja to the fence as England's lead touches 400. One wonders how long they will wait to make India bat again.
19:05 IST: Cook gets to his second half-century of the match. This has been a fine comeback by the England captain but he needs to get a move-on and get India to bat as soon as possible. For now, the game is not going anywhere apart from helping batsmen set some personal milestones.
18:59 IST: Gautam Gambhir is on the field, in place of Pankaj Singh.
18:56 IST: England were getting a nice move-on but they have suddenly slowed down. With the lead approaching 400, they should have now tried to up the ante further and give their bowlers a lot of time to bowl India out. Strange tactics.
18:37 IST: WICKET! Jadeja struck for the second time to get rid of Ian Bell but not before England had blazed away to 106/3, with a lead of 345 runs. Joe Root has walked out to join Cook.
18:23 IST: Bell had an injury scare but he has come out all guns blazing as England seek to attack and stretch their lead well beyond India's reach. The hosts, 97/2, lead by 336 runs.
18:19 IST: A lot has happened in the lunch interval. Kallis has retired from all forms of cricket and Jadeja has earned the right to appeal against his ban. Back to the action on the field now, with Cook and Bell in the middle. England are pushing their lead further.
18:11 IST: Ravindra Jadeja completes the 21st over after lunch. Meanwhile, the ICC has accepted to hear Jadeja's appeal against the fine imposed on him by match referee David Boon after his altercation with James Anderson. Hearing is on August 1.
17:30 IST: WICKET! Jadeja has struck at the stroke of lunch and it's a poor decision as Gary Ballance goes for 38. England have the upper hand though, with a lead of 319 runs with eight wickets remaining. And it's Lunch.
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Meanwhile, here's some more news from the world of cricket. South African veteran Jacques Kallis has decided to quit all formats of the game. He will not play in the 2015 World Cup.
17:26 IST: Murali Vijay in the attack and an opportunity for England to get some quick runs, perhaps? He has replaced Jadeja, who got some turn from that end. England 79/1 and lead by 318 runs.
17:04 IST: Shami over-pitched fractionally and Cook whips it to the on-side as England reach 48/1, with a lead of 287 runs. They are reaching a formidable position very quickly.
17:02 IST: Ballance hits Kumar for two straight fours as England raced away to a 283-run lead, with less than 30 minutes to go for tea.
16:56 IST: Cook steers Shami down to third-man and again it's a vacant area. Captains have been reluctant to place a fielder at third-man and batsmen have been more than happy to use the pace and score plenty of runs. England are 32/1, lead by 271 runs.
Meanwhile, visit here to find out how India are doing at the Commonwealth Games. It's another action-packed day in Glasgow.
16:52 IST: Cook has looked more assured in the second innings. Having got runs (95) in the first essay and with England in a commanding position, the skipper must feel confident. Can he lead the last assault and ensure his bowlers have enough time to bowl the Indians out?
16:50 IST: England have won 75 times (in 103 attempts) after taking a 200+ lead in the first innings. They have never lost. India, meanwhile, have won only once after conceding over 200; remember that epic Test at the Eden Gardens? When Laxman and Dravid played two of the greatest innings in history under the captaincy of Ganguly. The last two are watching today from the commentary box.
16:46 IST: The question is, what will Cook lay more emphasis on? Runs or time? He already has a massive lead and little over 100 more should give him plenty of runs to bat with. The English bowlers will need at least four sessions to bowl India out on a surface that is still good for batting. England have not won a Test match in a long, long time.
16:41 IST: Michael Atherton feels if things go well for England in the first session, they could move Jos Buttler up the order to score a few quick runs.
16:32 IST: WICKET! And Bhuvneshwar Kumar has struck for India, getting rid of Sam Robson as England slip to 22/1, with a lead of 261 runs. Cook has been joined by first-innings centurion Gary Ballance.
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16:28 IST: England are building on their lead, pressing home the advantage as India seek to restrict them to the bare minimum.
16:14 IST: Cook gets off the mark with a stylish flick off the pads and England are 10/0 after 3 overs.
16:00 IST: Cook and Robson in the middle and they will be keen to score a few quick runs before putting India back in to bat. Are they looking at 400 or more to set India? This period of play could see some fireworks.
15:50 IST: WICKET! That's the 16th fifer for James Anderson and India are all out for 330. Shami is the last man to fall as the Indians fall short of the follow-on target by 40 runs. However, as expected, Alastair Cook does not enforce the follow-on and he walks out to bat again with Sam Robson.
15:40 IST: WICKET! Dhoni tried to take birthday boy Anderson on and he perishes to become his fourth victim of the innings. India are 329/9 and still 41 runs away from avoiding the follow-on.
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15:38 IST: India are 329/8 after the first two overs of the day. They need 41 more to avoid the follow-on and with MS Dhoni in the middle, they might just do it. How long can Shami hold on with his captain?ÂÂ
Against a moving ball, against a telling attack and against a team desperate for a Test win, discipline in the mind is mandatory. Discipline in batting, too. Three Indian middle-order batsmen chose indiscretion at Southampton on Tuesday. They blew good starts by trying to be heroic. The man who was a 'lesson' for young Turks like Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane was Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
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Dhoni struck a patient unbeaten 50 and will resume with Mohammed Shami (four) on Wednesday morning as India look to scrape past the follow-on mark of 370. James Anderson and Stuart Broad each took three wickets to leave India in trouble on 323 for eight, 246 runs adrift of England, after the third day of the third test on Tuesday.
Anderson picked up three for 52 while fast bowling partner Broad shrugged aside some indifferent recent performances to snatch three for 65. The pair were well backed up by spinner Moeen Ali who took two for 62 after being banned by the International Cricket Council from sporting the "Save Gaza" and "Free Palestine" wristbands he wore on Monday.
Rahane and Dhoni made half-centuries but England, 1-0 down in the five-match series, are in control as they bid to win their first Test in 11 outings. Cook's go-to men will certainly be Broad and Anderson.
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"I've probably been putting too much pressure on myself to take responsibility and I just wanted to get back to enjoying my cricket," Broad told reporters. "Before this Test, coach Peter Moores came up to us and said, 'Go and express yourselves', which freed me up a bit. I'm an attacking cricketer but perhaps I fell into a defensive mindset after the tough time we've been going through."
Yet again, the morning session will be crucial for both teams. India will be happy to defend. England will be keen to see the back of Dhoni quickly. Pankaj Singh's ability with the bat has not been tested yet. But will England enforce the follow on if they get it? Sunil Gavaskar says no.