Bess takes 4 wickets to leave India struggling at 257 for 6
Off-spinner Bess takes four wickets to leave India struggling at 257 for 6 at stumps on Day Three
England remained on top at the end of the third day of the first Test against India after Rishabh Pant and Cheteshwar Pujara led the host’s fightback and reduced its first-innings deficit to 321 runs.
At the MA Chidambaram Stadium here on Sunday, India ended the day at 257 for six in reply to England’s 578 all-out. The visitor initially reduced the home side to 73 for four, with Rohit Sharma (6), Shubman Gill (29), skipper Virat Kohli (11) and vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane (1) making their way back to the pavilion.
However, Pant (91 off 88 balls) and Pujara (73 off 143 balls) rescued India with a 119-run stand for the fifth wicket. Off-spinner Dom Bess (4 for 55) was the best of the lot for England, picking up four big fish during his spell.
Rohit was dismissed in the fourth over when fast bowler Jofra Archer (2 for 52) forced an edge out of the opener. The ball went behind to wicketkeeper Jos Buttler, who made no mistake with the catch. Archer then got Gill five overs later after the latter mistimed a drive.
The ball looped up in the air and James Anderson did well to take a fine diving catch at mid-on. Gill faced 28 balls in his innings and hit five fours. Pujara and Kohli then looked to stabilise the innings, but the former fell to some sharp bowling and fielding from England after facing 48 balls.
Offie Bess extracted good turn and bounce off the pitch and the ball took Kohli’s inside edge before popping to Ollie Pope at short-leg. Pope lunged to his right and held on to the catch to dismiss the India captain. Bess also dismissed Rahane in his very next over, with England captain Joe Root diving to his left to pull off a one-handed catch at short-cover.
Southpaw Pant put up a measured counter-attack, targeting Leach and refraining himself from going after Bess. The 23-year-old smashed nine fours and five sixes and was dismissed when he mistimed a lofted shot off Bess. Leach completed the catch at deep cover to leave Pant nine runs short of his third Test century.
Pujara was dismissed by Bess in a rather bizarre fashion as the India No.3 attempted a pull shot. The ball rebounded off Pope’s shoulder at short leg before looping to Rory Burns at
short mid-wicket. Washington Sundar (33 batting off 68 balls) was in the middle with Ravichandran Ashwin (8 batting of 54 balls) at stumps.
At the start of the day’s play, tourist England added 23 runs to its overnight score of 555 for the lost of
a couple of wickets.
BRIEF SCORES: England (1st innings) 578 all-out in 190.1 overs (J Root 218, D Sibley 87, B Stokes 82); India (1st innings) 257 for 6 in 74 overs (R Pant 91, C Pujara 73, D Bess 4/55)