Ahmedabad: England were bowled out for a paltry 81 in their second innings in the ongoing third Test against India here Thursday. In the pink ball game, Indian spinners Axar Patel (5/32), Ravichandran Ashwin (4/48) and Washington Sundar (1/1) completely ran through the Indian innings. It means that India will have to get 49 runs to win the game and go 2-1 up in the four-Test series.
This was Axar Patel’s second five-wicket haul in the game and he has picked up 11 scalps in the match. Ashwin on the other hand, became the fourth Indian bowler to get to 400 Test wickets when he dismissed Jofra Archer.
None of the England could settle down against the Indian spin attack. Ben Stokes (25), Joe Root (19) and Ollie Pope (12) were the only batsmen who could manage double-digit scores. The rest perished in a meek manner.
If India go on to win the game, they will take a big step forward in reaching the final of the World Test Championships (WTC). A 2-1 victory in the series would be enough to guarantee India’s place in the WTC final. New Zealand have already booked their spot in the summit clash.
At the end of the second session, India have already scored 11 without loss. It means they will need another 38 runs in the remainder of the day’s play to win the game.
Earlier in the day, India resuming at 99 for three were bowled out for 145 with Root claiming five wickets for eight runs.
So far 17 wickets have fallen on the second day. However, the pitch doesn’t look as vicious as it is being made out to be.
Details to follow
