Rishabh Pant registered scores of 74 and 9 at Lord's
Indian captain Shubman Gill and his English counterpart Ben Stokes concurred that the run-out of keeper-batter Rishabh Pant proved to be the turning point in the third Test at Lord’s after the hosts earned a thrilling 22-run victory on the final day.
India restricted England to 387 in the first innings and were in a safe position at 248/3 in their first innings. Pant and KL Rahul had added 141 for the fourth wicket when Pant called for a quick single after dabbing the ball to point. England captain Ben Stokes quickly gathered the ball and took aim at the non-striker’s end ending Pant’s innings at 74.
India were able to match England’s first innings total and then got the hosts all out for 192 in the second innings. However, two fiery spells from Brydon Carse (2-30) in the final hour of Day 4 and Jofra Archer (3-55) on the final day morning tore apart the Indian batting, leaving them on the ropes at 82/7.
However, Ravindra Jadeja fought back with a valiant 61 not out off 181 balls and batted with the tail-enders to take India into the final session. But, Mohammed Siraj’s straight-batted block of Shoaib Bashir spun back on to the stumps and knocked the bail as England players celebrated wildly. As a result, England took a 2-1 lead in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
ALSO READ:
Gill felt that it was Pant’s call for the run that changed the game around for India.
“Rishabh Pant’s run out was the biggest moment in the game. We could have added some more runs and the match would have been different. It was an error of judgement. If you see, KL was running towards the danger end. It wasn’t about personal milestones. It was Pant’s call,” Gill told reporters in the post-match press conference.
Gill felt that India wanted to have a 80-100 lead in the first innings which could’ve made the difference but were halted mid-way through the innings.
Stokes, who was adjudged Player of the Match for his relentless all-round performances, also felt that the run-out proved to be the difference.
“Yeah, it was the turning point of the match. We all know how good Rishabh has been playing and I saw Rishabh stutter a bit in my peripherals. Then my natural instincts kicked in and I was able to hit the wicket,” Stokes said in post-match presentation.
Stokes, who scored 44 and 33 and then claimed 2-63 and 3-48, joked that he wouldn’t leave his bed for the next four days after an energy-sapping five days.
“It’s been a great series and that’s how it is when both good teams go at it. Honestly, I am going to fall off in my bed for four straight days and then get up to go to Manchester,” Stokes added.
The fourth Test at Old Trafford will begin on July 23.
For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, and YouTube.
