Key events
As Andy Bull wrote yesterday, this series is split into two: when Bumrah bowls and when he doesn’t. Brydon Carse and Chris Woakes were able to deliver a rapid partnership of 55 because Bumrah was having a breather. When he returned he needed just 10 deliveries to knock over the final two wickets.
England are all out for 465 – Bumrah takes five!
Shoaib Bashir delivers an exemplary forward defence to Bumrah before swivelling away a pull for one – a bit of relief for the No 11. And then comes the inevitable, Tongue’s off stump knocked back. Bumrah, the greatest fast bowler I’ve seen, has five wickets. India have a first-innings lead of six.
WICKET! Tongue b Bumrah 11 (England 465 all out)
100th over: England 464-9 (Bashir 0, Tongue 11) Jadeja tempts Tongue with a lobbed up wide one – and the batter gets a hold of it, a lofted drive bringing four. India lead by just seven.
99th over: England 460-9 (Bashir 0, Tongue 7) Shoaib Bashir gets plenty of love from the Headingley crowd after blocking out his first delivery, the last of Bumrah’s over.
WICKET! Woakes b Bumrah 38 (England 460-9)
Shardul Thakur takes his sweater and cap off … but there’s a late change of mind. Shubman Gill summons the great fast bowler, Jasprit Bumrah beaming as he flies in to bowl, still on for a five-wicket haul. But there’s frustration as Tongue drives and edges low, away from the cordon and to the boundary for four. A snorting delivery leaves Tongue at the last second, very nearly taking out off stump. England’s No 10 finally retreats to the safe haven of the non-striker’s end with a bunt off a full toss.
But here’s his fourth, Bumrah rattling Woakes’ stumps. It’s full and it nips through the batter’s defence.
98th over: England 455-8 (Woakes 38, Tongue 2) Jadeja repeats his trick, delivering six dots.
Paul Thompson provides a warning: “It’s just started raining in Thornton, 13 miles due west of Headingly. It’s heading in your direction. You might get half an hour before it arrives.”
97th over: England 455-8 (Woakes 38, Tongue 2) Gill is holding back Bumrah as Siraj continues. Woakes receives some treatment before Tongue gets off the mark with a clip for two. Siraj closes the over with a hooping outswinger, forcing Pant to collect with a dive.
96th over: England 453-8 (Woakes 38, Tongue 0) Ravindra Jadeja is brought on and delivers his trademark, the rapid maiden.
95th over: England 453-8 (Woakes 38, Tongue 0) Josh Tongue enters and Siraj greets him with a bumper. England trail by just 18, this game heading towards an innings shootout.
WICKET! Carse b Siraj 22 (England 453-8)
Carse goes full Bazball, trying to scoop Siraj but doesn’t get near it, somehow surviving. He then backs away next ball and hacks away down the ground for four, effective if not elegant against the short-ball ploy. But then comes the surprise, a pinpoint yorker that finally ends this troublesome partnership. Carse gave himself room to swat it away but found it out of reach.
94th over: England 448-7 (Woakes 37, Carse 18) Woakes’ offside single brings up the 50 partnership … off just 36 balls. It’s a rare quiet over, just one off it.
93rd over: England 447-7 (Woakes 36, Carse 18) Brydon Carse! He skips down the ground and swats Siraj through the covers for four. Siraj’s response is a fierce bumper. England’s strong tail is showing its value after India’s crumbled quickly yesterday.
92nd over: England 441-7 (Woakes 35, Carse 13) This is non-stop stuff, Woakes and Carse turning into middle-order blasters. The former pulls a short one from Krishna for six, and then makes room for another big one, upper-cutting over third. Woakes is a proper all-rounder at home, more than capable of doing a job higher up the order.
91st over: England 427-7 (Woakes 22, Carse 12) Brook, by the way, is the first England batter to depart for 99 in a Test since Jonny Bairstow against South Africa in 2017. Woakes remains regal though, driving Siraj straight for four. The runs flow freely as a ball flies off a length, beats Woakes and the leap of Pant to run away to the boundary. This pitch is playing some tricks.
90th over: England 416-7 (Woakes 15, Carse 12) Is it another drop by India? No, the outside edge off Woakes drops just short of Jaiswal in the cordon. Krishna continues to thunder in but is too wide as Carse throws the bat outside off and finds four behind point. Carse is then fortunate when an inside-edge runs away for four more, and two to close the over makes it a big one. India lead by just 55 now.
89th over: England 405-7 (Woakes 14, Carse 2) Harry Brook is a cool, relaxed character but he was clearly gutted with that – he has a solid record in England but with just the one Test hundred. Woakes and Carse exchange singles off Siraj.
88th over: England 403-7 (Woakes 13, Carse 1) Chris Woakes punches down the ground to end a difficult over for England with a boundary. They move past 400, with Brydon Carse into the mix – he’s a strong No 9, averaging close to 30 in first-class cricket with two hundreds.
Brook out for 99!
Oh my word. After missing with a swish outside off, Brook miscues a pull shot to deep backward square, missing out on a Test hundred at his home ground. Nevermind the milestone, that’s a huge moment in this Test match, handing India firm control – they still lead by 73.
WICKET! Brook c Thakur b Krishna 99 (England 398-7)
Taha Hashim
Thanks Rob, lovely to be on. And just as I type, Brook pushes Krishna into the offside for two to move to 99 …
87th over: England 396-6 (Brook 97, Woakes 9) Woakes watches a Bumrah inswinger like a hawk and drives it sweetly through mid-off for his first boundary. Beautiful shot, that. A square drive brings him two more; this is Bumrah’s 23rd over of the innings and fatigue may be setting in.
Right, that’s it from me. For the rest of the day, the job satisfaction is all Taha Hashim’s. Thanks as always for your company, emails and especially your Syd Lawrence memories.
Drinks
Rishabh Pant needs a bit of treatment, so the umpires are taking early drinks break.
“Rob,” says John Starbuck. “The lighter touch of that Curtly Ambrose story is that everyone knew that, whenever he took a wicket, his Mum would go outside the house and ring a bell to celebrate.”
Which leads us nicely, sort of, to that great Merv Hughes story. For those who didn’t complete their degree in Wicket Celebrations, it occurred during a Test between Australia and Pakistan in early 1990. Javed Miandad responded to a seledge from Hughes by calling hima “fat bus conductor”, and you can probably guess the rest. Hughes dismissed him soon after and celebrated by shouting “Tickets please!”
86th over: England 388-6 (Brook 97, Woakes 1) Oh good lord what a shot. Brook finds the most emphatic way to quieten Siraj, at least for a couple of deliveries, by lifting him effortlessly over wide long-on for six.
An errant delivery goes for four leg-byes, and makes it 18 from the over with a majestic cut for four. Siraj’s noggin has well and truly gone; it was last seen disappearing over the Pennines.
A reminder that this coruscating Test match is still 10 minutes away from the halfway point.
85th over: England 370-6 (Brook 83, Woakes 1) My word, Harry Brook has been dropped again! He was cramped for room by Bumrah and steered a cross-bat shot straight to third slip, where Jaiswal shelled a pretty simple chance.
Brook gets dropped a lot; it happened five times when he made 171 in New Zealand last winter. I guess you could argue his aggression puts pressure on the opposition and therefore he makes his own luck to some extent. But I still think Jaiswal would take that chance eight or nine times out of 10.
“Now then, what a subject for discussion: with whom would you like a pint?” muses Bill Hargreaves. “I’d have to say Richie Benaud. I think it would be a quiet, contemplative pint. No pork scratchings or any of that muck. I expect I’d find myself paying attention to my dress code before hand, too – not want to look too formal or informal. I just think you could talk to Richie about anything. There would be fertile, wistful pauses, no doubt. I expect my sister, Katy, would try to get Geoffrey Boycott and Shane Warne into each other. ‘There’s a lot of kiddology but you only really had four deliveries, Shane.’”
Isn’t that like saying Tyler Durden only really had one body?
84th over: England 367-6 (Brook 81, Woakes 1) It’s Test cricket, folks, but not as we knew it. Fourth over with the second new ball and Brook is batting like it’s the death overs of a T20. He wallops four down the ground, cuts another imperious boundary, then smears this far short of Krishna at mid-on.
Siraj’s beans are going. He hits Brook on the body with a sharp nipbacker, then hangs around for a word or 20.
A single makes it 11 from the over, and means Brook will be on strike to Bumrah on the next over. This is so good!
Counties to vote to cut matches from domestic cricket
Some significant news here from Matt Hughes. I never thought we’d see the day.
83rd over: England 356-6 (Brook 70, Woakes 1) Madon! Woakes misses a big drive at a ball from Bumrah that hits a crack and bounces grotesquely over everyone for four byes. That was a bit like Curtly Ambrose’s famous opening delivery to Mike Atherton in the 1995 Edgbaston Test.
Woakes then sways out of the way of a typically well directed bouncer. He’s hanging in there against Bumrah. I don’t think it’s a conscious decision but so far he has faced all 12 deliveries from Bumrah with the second new ball.
82nd over: England 352-6 (Brook 70, Woakes 1) Brook charges Siraj, misses a lusty slap at a wider ball and falls over. Rishabh Pant smiles – “he probably recognises a kindred spirit” says Mike Atherton on Sky.
“That is the most brainless piece of cricket I’ve seen in a long time from Smith,” says Felix Wood. “Incredibly stupid.”
I wouldn’t go that far. It’s frustrating as all hell but the margins are fine and you can argue the percentages were more in his favour than they would have been against Bumrah with the new ball. That said, I’m increasingly worried about England’s happy hookers in Australia and I do think they need to calibrate their approach.
There was a good replay on Sky just now that showed Krishna’s wicket ball to Smith was slightly wider and slightly shorter than the one that disappeared into the crowd earlier in the over. Not much – but enough to turn a 6 into a W, so maybe you’re right about this particular shot. I still don’t have a problem with Smith playing it per se.
81st over: England 350-6 (Brook 68, Woakes 1) Bumrah has a big LBW shout turned down after going wide of the crease to angle a full ball into Woakes. His teammates converge to discuss a review, only for Bumrah to signal that it was probably going past leg stump. He’s so good that he can even clear his head to objectively assess his own reviews. What self-respecting fast bowler does that?
Woakes battles his way through a maiden, made harder by a bit of new-ball swing for Bumrah. This next hour is quite vital.
80th over: England 350-6 (Brook 68, Woakes 1) That’s a hammer blow to England, who still trail by 121. And now Jasprit Bumrah has a new ball in his hand.
“I’ve just re-read your article about the 1991 series against West Indies, and the Oval Test in particular – halcyon days,” says Richard Barrowclough. “I’m nearly 72 now, and my first Test was also at the Oval, back in 1963 when Trueman and Statham opened the bowling for England for I suspect the last time; but I’ve never seen a more irresistible bowler than Curtly Ambrose from the Pavilion End at Lord’s in that series. Hick had finally qualified for England and all hopes were pinned on him, but was caught like the proverbial rabbit in the headlights.”
It was devastating – Ambrose dismissed him in six consecutive innings at a head-to-head average of 3.50 – and you could argue Hick never fully recovered. Few bowlers in history have been as good as Curtly when he had a specific motivation beyond winning cricket matches. You can him reading all the articles, all the Bradman comparisons, and concluding: “Not on my watch.”
Smith tried to pull six more but didn’t quite get enough on it this time. Jadeja took the catch as he backpedalled towards the sponge, then got rid of the ball before his momentum took him over the boundary. Sudharsan was there in support to complete a terrific relay catch. That’s such a timely wicket for India, with just three balls remaining until the second new ball becomes available. Bumrah could knife through the lower order now.
WICKET! England 349-6 (Smith c Sudharsan b Krishna 40)
It doesn’t matter because Smith is out next ball! The short-ball ploy, so beloved of England, had delivered a huge wicket for India.
India review for caught behind against Smith
Smith pulls Krishna for a massive six, then tries again and misses. But there’s a noise as the ball passes the bat and Gill is persuaded by Jaiswal to review the decision. Did it scrape the bottom edge as Smith thrashed across the line? Nope.
79th over: England 343-5 (Brook 68, Smith 34) We’ve all been panting in this heat. Now Harry Brook is Panting: he copies Rishabh’s falling lap stroke to hit Jadeja for four.
Jadeja has a big LBW appeal turned down when Brook misses a whip across the line at a quicker delivery. Missing leg.
78th over: England 335-5 (Brook 60, Smith 34) Krishna has no slip and nobody in front of square on the off side, a sign that he is going to bowl everything short. Brook mishits a tennis shot high towards mid-off, with the ball plopping safely; that prompts India to put one man in front of square on the off side.
Smith nails a pull through midwicket for four later in the over. Every little helps, especially ahead of the second new ball. England trail by 136.
“Cricketer you’d most like to have a pint with – has to be SF Barnes, surely?” says John Cox. “You need some vitriol.”
Imagine if you spilt his pint though. I’d almost prefer to spill Francis Begbie’s.
The players are back, and Prasidh Krishna has a field for short-pitched bowling.
Lunch
77th over: England 327-5 (Brook 57, Smith 29) Bumrah’s first ball to Brook is too straight and skips away for four leg-byes. Perhaps he’s showing the first signs of fatigue. Perhaps he’s past it and he’ll never take another Test wicket.
Perhaps not. He beats Brook with a short ball that cramps Brook for room and zings past his attempted uppercut. Brook then flicks three through midwicket to bring up an important fifty partnership from 71 balls.
That’s the last milestone of a brilliant session that produced 118 runs and two wickets in 28 overs. India are still ahead in the game, with England trailing by 144, but there isn’t much in it and Brook and Smith look well set.
The second new ball is available in three overs’ time, so at around 1.50pm. I would suggest clearing the old day planner.
76th over: England 319-5 (Brook 54, Smith 28) Jadeja rushes through an over, even by his standards, so that Bumrah can get one more in before lunch.
75th over: England 316-5 (Brook 52, Smith 27) Seven minutes to lunch, six overs to second the new ball… It doesn’t feel like the obvious time to bring back Jasprit Bumrah but that’s what Shubman Gill is doing.
The usual rules don’t apply to Bumrah, I guess, and he almost strikes first ball when Smith chips just short of mid-on. Sheeeeeeesh. The over ends far more positively for Smith, who times a terrific drive to the cover boundary. His bat has an abundant middle.
“God Shane was great,” says Max Williams. “Will never really accept that he’s gone. Probably the cricketer I’d most like to have a pint with – Atherton, Stokes and Cummins run him close. Yourself?”
I’m fine on my own thanks. I said FUGGOFF!
(Probably Ian Chappell, though I think he’s a red wine man now, Keith Miller, Graham Thorpe, Mahadeva Sathasivam, Virat Kohli, Betty Wilson, Ken Rutherford… ah, man, the list is endless. And too many of them have gone.)
74th over: England 310-5 (Brook 52, Smith 23) Jadeja’s figures (18-2-53-0) are a big old slice of nothing. But he’s been a threat, as you’d expect on such a dry pitch, and we should remember that the match still isn’t at the halfway point. Jadeja can be lethal in the fourth innings, as England know from last year’s Rajkot Test.
73rd over: England 307-5 (Brook 51, Smith 21) A quiet over from Thakur. Just over 10 minutes to go before lunch.
Brook dropped before reaching half-century
72nd over: England 305-5 (Brook 50, Smith 20) Another let-off for England! Brook has been dropped by Pant, a tough chance up to the stumps but one he would take maybe seven times out of 10. Brook leaned forward defensively to Jadeja, who found enough turn to take a thick outside edge. Pant couldn’t hold on and the ball teased the close fielders before dropping safely.
Smith offers maybe a fiftieth of a chance later in the over with a flick past short leg, then Brook drives a single to reach a stylish, if occasionally blessed, fifty from 65 balls. At one stage he was 0 from 15 deliveries. Even you and I can do that math.
71st over: England 300-5 (Brook 46, Smith 19) Thakur enquires for caught behind after beating Smith outside off stump. He’s getting the old ball to wobble ever so slightly, though not enough to change Smith’s attacking intent. He walks down the track again to flick firmly past midwicket for four.
Smith is such a dangerous player. A dragged pull for two brings up England’s 300; they trail by 171.
“Longtime follower and fan of OBO here,” writes Konrad Jagodzinski. “I just want to let you know that in Italy the England-India test series is available for free via the official ICC website. They stream live Sky broadcast minus commercials. It may be of interest to some readers.”
Ah, thank you, that’s kind. I think it’s only available in certain countries but still very handy for some of you. Bye, then! Have a nice life! You were welcome!
70th over: England 294-5 (Brook 46, Smith 13) Smith drives a flight delivery from Jadeja just short of extra cover. This is a tricky balancing act for England. They need to cash in against the old ball but they can’t really afford to lose another wicket before the new one becomes available in 10 overs’ time.
“Just read the news about David Lawrence,” writes James Brough. “My first day in student lodgings at university was the 4th day of the Oval Test in 1991 against West Indies. England spent it chiselling away at the Windies batsmen. Syd took five wickets, including ending Viv Richards’ last Test innings, caught at extra cover. What a moment that must have been for him. What hopes he must have had.
“My form master when I started secondary school at Newcastle High was Mick James. Short, kind, terrifying when angry. He also ran a B&B where I spent a week revising for A-levels because my family were on a skiing holiday in Switzerland. He died about 15 years ago of motor neurone disease. Aged 60-odd, he died about 18 months after diagnosis. I suspect he and Syd would’ve got on. What a bloody waste.”
That five-for is overshadowed, understandably, by Phil Tufnell’s extraordinary seven-for in the first innings. But England were really straining for wickets on a flat pitch and probably wouldn’t have won the game without Syd’s contribution. Crucially, he also dismissed Richie Richardson – who at the time was the best player in the world along with Graham Gooch and Robin Smith – for 121 on the fifth morning.
69th over: England 293-5 (Brook 46, Smith 12) Smith had pummelled a poor ball through point for four earlier in the over. This is an important spell for Thakur, whose selection ahead of Kuldeep Yadav is pretty hard to fathom, even allowing for his batting.
REVIEW! England 290-5 (Smith not out 9)
Sheeshorama, here’s another sliding door in this fascinating game. Smith ran down the track, missed a full toss from the new bowler Shardul Thakur and was given out LBW. But he reviewed instantly and the technology showed the ball would just have missed leg stump.
68th over: England 286-5 (Brook 46, Smith 5) A fine over from Jadeja to Brook includes a strangled LBW shout and a big-spinning delivery that goes past the edge.
After five dot balls, Brook seizes on a fractionally short delivery and pulls superbly for four. This is just brilliant cricket.
67th over: England 282-5 (Brook 42, Smith 5) A lovely nipbacker from Siraj is inside edged past leg stump for four by Smith. Siraj blows hot and cold but he’s such a competitor, with an irrepressible spirit that reminds me a little bit of Darren Gough. And when he’s hot, he burns.
“Can we not set a limit for how many times the bowling team can request a ball change?” asks Luke Stevenson. “Maybe one every hour? Most Test matches now once a team gets past 40 overs they spend half their time having the ball checked and disagreeing with the umpire about the outcome, which I would say is not what most people tune in for.”
Well, there’s always a lone weirdo who’s into that sort of thing, and I am that weirdo but I really like your idea. Is there a problem that we haven’t considered? Within that one hour limit the umpires would still be allowed to suggest a chance themselves if they think the ball has gone out of shape.
66th over: England 278-5 (Brook 42, Smith 1) Two singles from Jadeja’s over. At least that’s what the scorecard says. Hey, Ravindra, slow down.
