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Live Report - India vs England, 2nd Test, Chennai, 3rd day

Written by 
Published in Cricket
Sunday, 14 February 2021 22:01

Welcome to day three of our live report of the second India-England Test from Chennai. Join us for updates, analysis and colour. You can find our traditional ball-by-ball commentary here

*Most recent entry will appear at the top, please refresh your page for the latest updates. All times are local

11.20am: Chennai of the tiger

Virat Kohli has played with steely intent in India's second innings - no chance of him getting bowled playing an expansive drive this time around. He took 20 balls to get off the mark (and off a pair) but has looked virtually impregnable since, which is quite something on this surface. With R Ashwin playing his shots at the other end, India have pushed their lead on towards 350. Stuart Broad has just surfaced with the ball for the first time since day one, bowling with Foakes standing up to the stumps, only to see Ben Stokes put down a sharp, reaction chance at slip off Ashwin.

11am: This one's a keeper

2:32
'I want the batsmen to know that if they leave the crease, they're gone'

Since we've been treated to a display of slick glovework behind the stumps from an English wicketkeeper, here's one of the all-time great stumpers, Sarah Taylor, speaking to ESPNcricinfo a couple of years ago.

10.45am: Moeen strikes

Axar Patel is next to go, with India's lead a tick above 300, and Moeen Ali has now picked up six wickets on his return to Test cricket after 18 months out of the side. He spoke before play today about how he thought he had bowled "better as the days wore on" and his enjoyment at bowling Virat Kohli for a duck in the first innings: "Pretty happy with that wicket." He also said that England would need to keep fighting, despite facing defeat in this game, with two Tests still to play.

"It's been tough. You never want to make excuses. But I haven't played any games. Training has been difficult as I ripped my finger a few weeks ago, so I couldn't really bowl too much in the build up to the game. When you play games you get better. Bowling in the nets is completely different to bowling in games and being under pressure. I felt like it's got better as the game has gone on.

"We just need to fight. It's going to be tough for us to win or even draw the game. It doesn't mean we're going to give up. We need to take the game as long as we can. Put in a performance we can take into the next game. We need to show some fight with the ball and the bat. The toss is massive here. The different between the sides was Rohit's innings. It was fantastic and he took the game away from us."

10.20am: Moving on, moving on

England have their fourth wicket of the morning, Ajinkya Rahane caught at short leg by the diving Ollie Pope. That's the seventh time Moeen has dismissed Rahane in Tests, second only to Nathan Lyon. India, though, are sitting on a 280-plus lead and might already be thinking about how quickly they can finish England off...

10.15am: Foakes hero

Birthday boy Ben Foakes is doing his best to blow out India's candles on the third morning in Chennai. He now has two stumpings to go with a run-out, and the last of the three was the best of the lot - unsighted after Rishabh Pant charged down at Leach, only for the ball to go explode off the surface and beat his wild swing, Foakes collected down the leg side and applied the rubber stamp with the efficiency of a post office clerk. He missed one yesterday, but now has three stumpings in the match - the first time an England wicketkeeper has done so in men's Tests since Alan Knott in 1968. The man Foakes replaced in the side for this match, Jos Buttler, has one stumping in 30 Tests as keeper (completed last month in Galle).

9.45am: And heeeerrrre's Rishabh

This time the third umpire sides with Foakes, as Rohit Sharma is stumped after dragging his back foot just over the line (pulling down Rohit's home Test average to a mere 80.52). Excellent hands from Foakes, who turns 28 today and has earned himself an extra slice of cake - the delivery from Jack Leach came through at almost shoulder height, but the keeper took it and smoothly whipped off the bails in one movement. India's response to two early wickets has been to send in Rishabh Pant above Ajinkya Rahane, to take the attack back to England.

9.35am: Heeeerrrre's Virat (on a pair)

It's been hard enough for most batsmen on this pitch, but Cheteshwar Pujara has lost his wicket in most unfortunate fashion to start the day, run out in the first over by short leg after dropping his bat trying to regain his ground. Although, as Sunny Gavaskar has just said on commentary (with tongue firmly in cheek), "you have to blame the pitch" after Pujara's bat jammed into the crease line but not over it, with Ben Foakes collecting Ollie Pope's throw to break the stumps before the lunging batsman could get his foot back. Time for India's captain to have another crack.

9.30am: #PoliteEnquries

4:58
#PoliteEnquiries: Is this a four-Test series or four-toss series?

What better way to start the day than a fresh, hot injection of George and Raunak into your eyeballs?

9.20am: Signed, sealed... delivered?

Hello again, folks. Day three is often moving day of a Test - but you sense this one has already unloaded the van and is getting comfy in its new surroundings. Pretty much everything India have touched has turned to gold this time around in Chennai, and they will be backing themselves to wrap up a series-levelling win at some point later today or tomorrow. England, barring Headingley-plus-plus miracles, know this game is probably beyond them... but there's still a series to fight for, battles to be won and lost.

Alan Gardner is a deputy editor at ESPNcricinfo. @alanroderick

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