A thrilling final day between England and India awaits us at Lord’s. So make sure to follow our live updates and stay ahead of the curve (Please refresh for the latest). Also follow our ball-by-ball commentary here and our Hindi live coverage here.
Bowlers bouncing bowlers
11.55am
Jasprit Bumrah is generally a mild-mannered guy on the field, but he’s just copped a bouncer from Mark Wood and refused a single after it has deflected to third man off his helmet. That, of course, followed from an argument he had with someone before the over began. And the big picture in all this is that he had bounced James Anderson earlier in the match and hit him on the helmet.
Now, personally, I find it silly that bowlers of this skill are peppering each other instead of looking to finish the innings off; when Bumrah was bowling to Anderson, Root was at the other end and it was in India’s best interests to stop England from stretching the lead. Here, it is in England’s interest to end this innings as quickly as possible because they are definitely in for a tricky chase the way this surface is playing. It is a slightly baffling strategy from England – second new ball, did well to get Pant early in the day – who have one catcher for Bumrah at the time of writing this.
I suppose Bumrah has shown he has some baseline skill against the short ball, perhaps slightly better than Anderson, but the debate has been on in social media about bowlers doing this to each other. Remember, Shami missed almost the entire series in Australia after being struck in the elbow by Cummins during the match when India were bowled out for 36.
Is there a way to stop it from happening? Yes. The screengrab below is from ICC’s playing conditions. The umpires do have the power to take a call on dangerous bowling – and you’ll recognise the rules because it’s similar in the case of beamers. It is, as you’ll see, subjective.
England smell a finish
11.41am
Ecstasy and agony pic.twitter.com/BkgEXng8FZ
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) August 16, 2021
Mark Wood not back on is back
11.10am
You’ll remember that Wood had gone off the field last evening after tumbling at the third man boundary. He hasn’t come back out today. (Edit: He’s back now) Here’s what he had said to Sky Cricket earlier:
“‘I wish I’d stuck the big boot out,’ was the first thing that came into my mind [laughs]. It saved one run, hopefully we don’t need that extra run at the end but I guess that’s the just the way I play. I try to give everything I’ve got whether I’m bowling or fielding. I’m not the world’s best fielder by any stretch but just tried to flick it back and landed awkwardly on my right shoulder. I just jarred it a little bit. I heard a bit of a crack but I’ll crack on – I’ve got three wickets at Lord’s so we’ll see what the medics say this morning. I’m a little bit sore but hopefully it doesn’t affect my bowling. I’ll give it a try in the warm-up and if it’s all good then I’ll be available to the captain if needed.
“It’ll be a bit of both. I don’t think I’ll be in a position too often where I’ve got three wickets at Lord’s with that board staring us in the face. Hopefully Jimmy and Robbo can wrap it up with the new ball this morning but if I’m needed, I’d love to give it a go. It’s just whether the medics say I could do further damage on it, or if it could cost us for the rest of the series – I don’t know. It’ll be a discussion with them. It is pretty sore and the minute so I might need some sort of doctors’ remedy to help me out.”
It’s nearly time…
10.20am
People’s Monday. #ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/ebk4GxuezE
— Andrew Miller (@miller_cricket) August 16, 2021
Predictions
10.10am
Test cricket summit?
9.32am
We had a gripping finish to the West Indies vs Pakistan Test last night, and this one between England and India is one of many in recent times that is poised for a tense finish. The World Test Championship does seem to have helped on that front, but is “context” all that’s required? Ian Chappell reckons if the players really, care, they should be calling a summit – led by Virat Kohli – to discuss with the ICC how player development, and therefore quality of cricket, could be deteriorating with the current schedule. Here is that column, excerpt below:
“If it’s decided Test cricket is part of the game’s future, then a decision needs to be made on what form it takes to best fit into modern society. After all, it’s better to have a streamlined version than no Test cricket. It’s hard for the modern player to maintain the standard Kohli is referring to when you look at the schedule. While the battle for the Pataudi Trophy is in progress, any player England might potentially call up is involved in the Hundred, the T20 Vitality Blast, or the Royal London Cup 50-over matches. Not a red-ball game in sight, and yet Test cricket, at least according to the majority of players and administrators, is the game’s pinnacle.”
Poll
9.05am
Final day
8.33am
03:03
Good morning, and welcome back to the Live Report! Some stunning cricket yesterday has put this match in a tantalising position – India are 154 ahead with four wickets in hand, which we would have looked at as a complete win for England going by the pitch on the first three days. Yesterday has shown that might not be quite the case. England have bowled superbly throughout this innings and at no point have let India come close to dictating the pace. The one man who is capable of attempting that – Rishabh Pant – is still at the crease though, and as ever during his short career, he will make our imaginations run.
But try not to get ahead of yourself; nothing about this situation is conducive to another Pant blockbuster. The pitch has slowed down, it’s showing variable bounce, and England have figured out at least three or four different ways of bowling at India this innings. They’ve challenged the edge, they’ve challenged the front pad, they’ve bowled short, they’ve got a left-arm bowler, and they’ve bowled spin – all with success. Yes, there is Pant, but there is also India’s tail. Most importantly, it is almost certain this day begins with the second new ball in Anderson’s hand.
Varun Shetty is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo
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