India beat England by 203 runs in the third Test at Trent Bridge on Wednesday to cut the home side’s lead in the five-match series to 2-1.
England, set a mammoth 521 to win, were bowled out for 317.
India needed just 10 minutes to wrap up victory with Wednesday’s 17th ball after England resumed the fifth day on 311 for nine, the match ending when Ravichandran Ashwin had England No 11 James Anderson caught by Ajinkya Rahane at slip — the first wicket for an India spinner in the Test.
This was just India’s seventh Test match victory in England.
It was also a personal triumph for India captain and man-of-the-match Virat Kohli who made 103 in his side’s second innings 352 for seven declared following the star batsman’s first-innings 97.
England, whose captain Joe Root won the toss and fielded, slumped to 161 all out in their first innings when they were punished by Hardik Pandya’s five for 28 — the medium-pacer’s maiden five-wicket haul in Test cricket.
They suffered another top-order slump in a second innings where they had to make cricket history to pull off an improbable win — no side have made more in the fourth innings to win a Test than the West Indies’ 418 for seven against Australia at St. John’s, Antigua in 2003.
England were in dire trouble at 62 for four before a stand of 169 between Jos Buttler, whose 106 was his maiden Test century, and Ben Stokes (62) kept India at bay.
But the recalled India fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah then took three wickets for eight runs in five balls on his way to innings figures of five for 85 in 29 overs to leave England on the brink of defeat.
This win kept alive India’s hopes of becoming just the second team, after a Don Bradman inspired Australia in 1936/37, to win a five-match Test series from 2-0 down.
It also represented a remarkable turnaround following their innings and 159-run loss in the second Test at Lord’s.
“The victory was much needed at this stage of the series and to have a performance like that, which was so clinical in all three departments, is something that was pleasing to me as a captain,” said Kohli.
“The players are really proud of what they’ve done in this Test too. Everyone is taking responsibility at the right time,” he added.
Root admitted England’s first-innings batting had let them down.
“It’s fair to say that we very much under-performed in that innings,” he said. “You look at the second innings and the partnership between Buttler and Stokes and that’s a real lesson to our side in how to play Test match cricket.
“Not the fact that they scored at a slower rate or looked to be more defensively minded, but the way they adapted to the situation and were very clear about how they were going to score their runs,” Root added.
The fourth Test at Southampton starts on August 30.
India make light work of England to breathe life back into the five-match series
India make light work of England to breathe life back into the five-match series
- Tourists win by 203 runs at Trent Bridge to leave five-match series at 2-1 to England.
- India dominated from the first day in Nottingham to leave series questions about the hosts' batting lineup.
Top seed Felix Auger-Aliassime overcomes struggles to progress in Dubai
- The Canadian, ranked No. 8 in the world, needed 6 match points to secure victory over China’s Zhizhen Zhang
- Winning return for British No. 1 Jack Draper following 8 months out with a recurring arm injury
DUBAI: Felix Auger-Aliassime has returned to the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships with the aim to improve on last season’s runner-up showing.
The Canadian, ranked No. 8 in the world and the No. 1 seed in Dubai, needed six match-points to secure victory over China’s Zhizhen Zhang, and progresses to Wednesday’s round of 16 to face Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
Auger-Aliassime opened his campaign with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win. A year ago, the 25-year-old reached the championship match but was denied the trophy by a red-hot Stefanos Tsitsipas.
This time around, he arrives as one of the leading contenders for the title, with his face prominently positioned around the host venue’s expanded Tennis Village, a fact he is happy to embrace.
“It’s the right timing,” he said post-match.
“It’s not like it’s too soon for me. I’ve been on this Tour for quite some years now and been in this position as a teenager in Junior Grand Slams too, so I like to be in this position where there is pressure on me and to see if I deliver.
“I am kind of testing my growth, self-belief, and composure, and I want to be in this position in even bigger tournaments one day.”
Against Zhang, he saved four break points, but also failed to convert two match points on return at 5-4 and three more at 6-5 before holding his nerve in the tiebreak to avoid a third set.
“I stopped counting at some point; it was getting too frustrating,” he said with his charismatic smile.
“It’s weird because having match points is the position you want to be in as a player, yet your mind plays a trick on you because how much further I am from losing, he’s the one who should be tight, but the players (leading) tend to actually get tight.
“But I kept telling myself if there’s a third set, I’ll be there.”
Next up is Mpetshi Perricard after the Frenchman saw off Tunisian wildcard Moez Echargui, the Arab world’s top-ranked player at No. 141. Echargui pushed himself and his opponent to the limit, with all three sets going to tiebreaks.
Mpetshi Perricard finally edged through 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 7-6 (4). Such was the intensity, Mpetshi Perricard required medical timeouts for ankle pain and suggested he was “not very confident” he would recover fully in time for his next match.
For 33-year-old Echargui, in contrast, February is proving positive. Having made his ATP 500 debut last week in Doha, he said this month marks an important new chapter in his career.
“Going on center court and playing against top players, it is where we want to be, playing in these big tournaments, in front of these big crowds,” said Echargui, whose next stop is Indian Wells next week.
“Despite the result, I’m feeling really positive about it. I knew the match would be a hard one, so I just tried to stay focused all the way through. I’m proud to represent my country and to represent all the Arab world, especially here in Dubai.”
In the final match on center court, British No. 1 Jack Draper eased back into life on Tour following eight months out with a recurring arm injury. The No. 4 seed, demonstrating a new serve technique, hit 13 aces as he beat French qualifier Quentin Halys 7-6 (8), 6-3 to progress.
“Today was a little bit nervy,” said Draper, who was world No. 4 last June before a series of injuries struck.
“It wasn’t my cleanest performance, but after all this time, I’m really proud of myself. The way I came out and competed; it wasn’t easy but from here on, hopefully I can go from strength to strength.
“It was really great to get back competing and in front of people, I’ve been practicing for eight months now in front of only my granddad, so to be out here, to play in front of you guys and be back on tour it is honestly such a privilege for me.”
