AAfter all the waiting, the rescheduled fifth Test between England and India finally got underway in Edgbaston yesterday and what a first day it was.
Ben Stokes’ England took their form from their victorious New Zealand series to bring tourist numbers down to 98-5, with James Anderson and Matthew Potts particularly superb either side of a two-hour break for rain over the lunchtime period.
But then things turned into the Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja show when the duo made 222 runs together – an India record for sixth wicket in Tests against England – to pull their team back in the day.
Wicket-keeper Pant crashed 19 fours and four sixes, taking 89 balls to reach his hundred before finally falling for 146 after slashing Joe Root’s off spin to slip. But Jadeja remains unbeaten at 83, as India closed at 338-7 with the possibility of more runs this morning.
However, England assistant coach Paul Collingwood insisted his team would not be intimidated by chasing runs if another fourth inning total required it.
England chased over 250 three times in the fourth inning in their 3-0 series win over New Zealand.
“We’re not afraid of what to chase in the fourth innings,” Collingwood said. “The way we played in the three games against New Zealand showed that we are not impressed with what the opponent can expect in the first innings.
“We don’t play conventional test cricket. We try to be as attacking as possible. We want to be on the more aggressive side of the line. If we think we can take early wickets with some moisture in the field then maybe we have a game lead .”
India is chasing its first test series win in England since 2007 after last September’s last test was postponed due to Covid-19 cases among the tourists’ backroom staff. India is currently leading 2-1.