Even new England could struggle with India’s likely total
Pujara plays old-fashioned way to build tourists’ lead Bairstow’s century lights up morning but he lacks support
at Edgbaston
England will see their run chase as an opportunity to reiterate their belief they have “reshaped” Test cricket but to win they will have to go beyond anything achieved so far. After easing to three targets between 277 and 299 against New Zealand, they see nothing as off limits, but are in a different scrap now.
India are 125 for three, 257 ahead with Rishabh Pant 30 from 46 balls and holding back for an onslaught this morning to push the target to beyond 400. England will go for it, no question, and if they fail will shrug it off and remain committed to their new methods. But no team have chased more than 283 at Edgbaston and only twice in 30 years have a side batting fourth made more than 157 to win. There is uneven bounce and India’s pace attack, led by Jasprit Bumrah, is highly skilled and unrelenting.
Jonny Bairstow turns everything he touches to gold and his fifth Test hundred of 2022, 106 off 140 balls, was the best of the lot given it combined defence and attack, but he cannot ride solo like he did in the first innings. It was a headlong dash in the morning while England batted, but a slow Sunday evening meander as Cheteshwar Pujara took root, steadying India with 50 off 139 balls after two early losses. Fifteen overs were left unbowled, the positive approach not extending to getting on with the game.
There was a brutality about Bairstow in Nottingham and Leeds but this was a well-crafted century built on traditional Yorkshire bread and butter of a solid defence and application. He played a superb defensive innings on Saturday evening, when Mohammed Shami made the ball talk, and kept his attacking instincts in check as India started superbly with Bumrah and Shami.
Bairstow played and missed five times in eight balls to Shami, Ben Stokes charged Bumrah’s second ball and there was needle when Virat Kohli chirped Bairstow. This was bare-knuckle Test cricket, two bowlers squaring up to two batsmen with neither willing to step back.
The first hour was a page turner, England scoring 65 in 10.5 overs, Stokes dropped twice and Bairstow finding his range. For Kohli, what he said was relatively tame but Bairstow felt the need to get in a fight as he struggled with Shami. Normally his motivation is proving pundits wrong but he has had nothing but praise recently so needed to look elsewhere and settled on Kohli. Bairstow was on 16 off 64 balls when he bit at Kohli and it could have backfired: he tried to smash the next ball into the pavilion but missed. From then on, the ball pinged off the middle of his bat as he hit 30 off 10 balls, with four fours in a row.
Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur were belted for sixes, an lbw was overturned on 89 and Bairstow was on 91 when rain brought an early lunch. He clipped the first ball of the afternoon for four, Bumrah came back on to make life difficult, but Bairstow reached his hundred off 119 balls when Ravindra Jadeja fumbled on the boundary. It was Bairstow’s 11th Test century, first against India and fifth of the year. Only three batsmen have scored six for England in a year and Bairstow still has six Tests to go in 2022.
Stokes has given Bairstow licence to attack, and unshackled a player of immense shot-making talent, but he just needs to channel a little bit of his team-mate into his own batting. Stokes is better than this. True, he is trying to stamp his way on the team, but he is so respected by his players that he can do it more subtly than being reckless.
There comes a point when a batsman is in the ascendant and can rely on controlled aggression to push home the advantage. Stokes had seen off Bumrah and Shami but continued to aim for 20 rows into the stand. A skier was dropped by Thakur at cover when he had 18 off 16 balls and another missed at midoff by Bumrah on 25. Next ball Stokes repeated the shot, but Bumrah dived to his left and held on.
Stokes is batting at a strike rate of 80, higher than any other home summer, and is adamant he will not change. But at 149 for six his side were still 267 behind, and he was the last recognised batsman. Bairstow needed him. Shami deserved his wicket when he returned at the City End, Bairstow edging his first ball to slip, with Kohli blowing a kiss as he celebrated the catch. Siraj was then too hot for the tail to handle, finishing with four for 66.
England needed an early breakthrough. James Anderson found Shubman Gill’s edge with the third ball but Pujara and Hanuma Vihari crabbily hung in until tea. Vihari nicked Stuart Broad to second slip. This is almost certainly the last Anderson-kohli duel and it was muted. Kohli used his feet to minimise the movement and was much more controlled outside off stump. Kohli survived Anderson before Stokes produced a snorter that reared off a length and took the glove. Billings flapped at the chance, but Joe Root grabbed the rebound.
Pujara was infuriating, fiddling with his gloves, complaining about movement in the crowd. He must be frustrating to bowl at but did his job the old-fashioned way.