India Matches England's Score in Thrilling Test at Lord's
India Levels the Score at Lord's
On July 12, at Lord's, opener KL Rahul's century and Ravindra Jadeja's impressive 72 runs propelled India to equal England's first innings total of 387 runs in the ongoing Test match.
As Day 3 concluded, England stood at 2 runs without loss, with Zak Crawley on 2 and Ben Duckett yet to score. The team, led by Ben Stokes, held a narrow two-run advantage after the third day's play.
Starting the final session at 316/5, India was trailing by 71 runs, with Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy at the crease, scoring 40 off 70 balls and 25 off 77 balls, respectively.
India lost their sixth wicket in the 95th over when Nitish was dismissed for 30 runs after a solid 72-run partnership with Jadeja.
Washington Sundar joined Jadeja at the crease following Nitish's exit. Jadeja reached his half-century with a boundary off Joe Root in the 98th over.
India crossed the 350-run mark in the 104th over, with Sundar hitting a four off Ben Stokes. However, Jadeja was dismissed for 72 runs in the 114th over, which included eight fours and a six.
Akash Deep and Jasprit Bumrah failed to add to the score, and India was bowled out for 387, matching England's total. Sundar was the last wicket to fall, scoring 23 runs.
Chris Woakes was the standout bowler for England, taking three wickets for 84 runs in 27 overs. Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes each claimed two wickets, while Brydon Carse and Shoaib Bashir took one wicket each.
Earlier in the innings, KL Rahul celebrated his second century of the series, reaching the milestone with a single that drew applause from the crowd. However, he was dismissed for 100 runs shortly after, caught at slip off Shoaib Bashir's bowling.
India faced some confusion in running between the wickets after Rahul's dismissal, with Jadeja and Reddy involved in a few close calls, but managed to avoid losing more wickets.
In the morning session, India started strong, with Rishabh Pant hitting a boundary off Jofra Archer's first delivery. Rahul's aggressive batting included three consecutive fours off Brydon Carse, bringing his score to 76 runs.
Rahul and Pant's partnership reached 100 runs, with Pant scoring a quick fifty before being run out for 74 runs due to a brilliant throw from Ben Stokes.
England had previously scored 387 runs in their first innings, with Joe Root contributing a century and significant partnerships down the order.
In response, Jasprit Bumrah was the pick of the bowlers for India, taking five wickets, while Mohammed Siraj and Nitish Kumar Reddy each claimed two wickets.
Brief Scores: England: 387 & 2/0 (Ben Duckett 0*, Zak Crawley 2*; Jasprit Bumrah 0/2) vs India: 387 (KL Rahul 100, Rishabh Pant 74; Chris Woakes 3/84).