Undoubtedly, Joe Root was the man for England once more at Headingly, as he had been in the first 2 Tests. The captain’s brilliant run with the bat extended in IND vs ENG 3rd Test. He smashed 121 runs with a strike rate of over 70, and England’s first-inning advantage had surpassed 300 runs by the time Root was out.
The hosts had opened with a score of 120/0 earlier in the day, as batsmen Rory Burns and Haseeb Hameed managed to build on their half-centuries. However, nobody of them reached the coveted three-figure threshold. Mohammed Shami pushed all the way Burns in the opening half-hour of the day, whereas Ravindra Jadeja bowled a ripping ball to upset the edge of the off-stump.
India would have intended to limit England’s lead with a score of 159/2. Joe Root, their tour’s opponent, had different plans. He and the returning Dawid Malan took advantage of the ideal striking circumstances at Headingley, putting on a 139-run partnership in under 32 overs. The Indian bowlers were increasingly irritated, with Ishant Sharma proving to be the greatest letdown for the visitors.
Root reached his magnificent tonne, his 3rd in a row, during the play: IND vs ENG 3rd Test
Two batsmen hammered a feast of the total and extended the margin over 200 runs. In the 2nd session, India let up 116 runs in approximately 26 overs, ultimately putting them out of the match. The visitors were fortunate to remove Malan on 70 off the final ball of the session, as the lefty was trapped down the leg-side, allowing India to take the lead.
India fought back a little in the last session, with pacers Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah bowling their guts out. The runs, on the other hand, kept coming at a steady pace. Root reached his magnificent tonne, his 3rd in a row, during the play. He put on another masterclass hitting display to score 121, and it was Jasprit Bumrah who eventually broke through his resistance.
Even when England skipper Joe Root stretched out to make a drive, the ball popped on a fair length region and chopped back in. Nonetheless, India breathed a sigh of relief when a large gap across bat and pad allowed him to find his middle stump. Throughout the session, wickets dropped around him, with Jonny Bairstow, Moeen Ali and Jos Buttler contributing nothing to the total.
The tail started waving for the home supporters as Sam Curran performed a useful innings before being dismissed for 15, whereas Craig Overton demonstrated his skill in the middle to remain undefeated on 22 with Ollie Robinson. England finished the day on 423/8, with a 345-run lead in the 1st innings.
With the surface now looking flat, India will be hoping to bat well in their 2nd innings. However, they are so far down in the game that it will take an immense effort from their batters to get them out of this mess.
