India lost the third Test by a slender margin of 22 runs.
England lead the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2-1. The hosts have earned an emphatic victory at the Home of Cricket. Ben Stokes starred in the third ENG vs IND Test, which ended on July 14. The English skipper bowled relentlessly to take five wickets in the Test match, playing a crucial role in the victory for his team. On the other hand, former Indian pacer Irfan Pathan has slammed Jasprit Bumrah for not bowling enough on the penultimate day. Pathan felt that the workload management narrative has been taken very seriously and is being overhyped to protect Bumrah. In his opinion, once the game starts, there should be no excuse not to bowl a particular bowler.
Ben Stokes bowled a 9.2 over spell on the morning of Day 5 of the Test. India started the day needing 135 runs with six wickets in hand, but were soon reduced to 82/7. Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah then had to do the heavy lifting, before the latter was dismissed. Mohammed Siraj was resolute in providing a stand to Jadeja at the other end. The left-handed all-rounder showed great resilience, staying unbeaten on 81. However, Pathan feels that the visitors are too reserved when it comes to bowling Bumrah. He lauded Stokes for his fitness and spell, and said that the Indian speedster must be used more.
“His [Jasprit Bumrah’s] workload was managed, having not played at Edgbaston. When you play a match, there is no workload. You have to win at all costs. The Indian camp could have done that better. Archer was playing a Test match after four years, but he did not stop. He bowled a six-over spell in the morning before returning to bowl again. Ben Stokes did not think about workload at all; if he can bowl nine overs, hum toh peeche rah gaye (Indian pacers were left behind)”, said Pathan on his channel.
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There’s something about July 14. England cricket seems to win everything on July 14 at the Home of Cricket. The team bagged their maiden World Cup at the same venue, on the same date, six years ago. Ben Stokes was the standout performer in the third Test. He went on to scalp three crucial wickets in the second innings as England defended 193. His resolute approach and persistence in keeping bowling are being lauded by a lot of pundits and experts. The English skipper hasn’t been very fluent with the bat in the series so far, but has been England’s best bowler by far. Pathan spoke about the English captain and also lauded him for his attitude on the field.
“Ben Stokes bowled a marathon 9.2-over spell in the morning on day five. What a player he is. He bowls, bats, and executes a crucial run-out of Rishabh Pant, but there is no talk of workload management. But with India, it is not like that. Jasprit Bumrah bowls five overs and waits for Joe Root to come out to bat when you need to control the game. It was disappointing”, said the former speedster.
England will be very convinced by the fight they showed at Lord’s. They will have a few questions lingering. Shoaib Bashir is out of the series citing a thumb injury, and England have named Liam Dawson as his replacement for the remainder of the series. On the other hand, India will have to think about their approach. Bumrah is slated to play just one out of the two remaining Tests, and Shubman Gill and Co. have a stern question in front of them to answer. To add to that, Rishabh Pant’s fitness continues to be a concern, and if the Indian wicketkeeper-batter isn’t able to recover in time for the fourth Test, India will miss the services of their vice-captain.
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