Third LV= Insurance test, Emerald Headingley (day 3 of 5) India 78 (Anderson 3-6) & 215-2(Pujara 91%, Rohit 59) England 432 (Root 121) India trailing by 139 runs Scorecard
India's stubborn resistance on Day Three at Headingley to England's bid for victory in the third Test against England was met with resistance.
India needed 354 to allow England to bat again. They were bowled out for just 78 in the first innings and then worked to 215-2.
They were led by Cheteshwar Pujara, a stoic 91 not lost, while Rohit Sharma made an elegant 59.
Captain Virat Kohli looked good after their second-wicket stand at 82 was over.
England lost their last two wickets, scoring nine runs, to be outed for 432. They bowled well, but without any rewards.
Craig Overton and Ollie Robinson were especially impressive on an unresponsive pitch. They claimed a wicket each.
England is not in danger of losing another Headingley victory, but they are trying to win the series at 1-1.
There are no thoughts of another Headingley miracle.
This historic ground has seen England win some remarkable victories, including Ben Stokes in 2019 and Ian Botham 1981. However, it has also suffered from some surprising defeats. Both Sri Lanka in 2014, and West Indies 2017 won from very hopeless positions.
It is still a strange idea that India will join those ranks, especially considering the fact that no other team has ever overcome such a huge first-innings deficit in order to win a Test.
The fight they showed - in stark contrast to Wednesday's soft batting - has added intrigue to a weekend without any play.
Although Friday's action was slower than that of the previous two days, it was still fascinating. Rarely did it feel that the India batsmen were in control of England's threat.
There were some other bizarre moments. There were also some bizarre moments. A plane flew overhead with a banner that said 'Sack the ECB, save Test cricket'. Meanwhile, pitch invader 'Jarvo' made an encore idiotic entry onto the field. This time he padded up.
England had to bowl their spinners late in the gloom to allow India to score more. Play was then called off four runs early by Joe Root, who wanted his pace bowlers take the new ball.
Pujara leads India resistance
Pujara had played 12 Test innings and not scored a Test century, but he made 45 on Day 4 of the second Test to set the stage for India's stunning win.
He was here, as Yorkshire's overseas cricket player, and he epitomized India's approach: patient, determined, and watchful. This is where he scored his highest Test score since January 2019.
Pujara arrived shortly after KL Rahul had been taken by Jonny Bairstow of Overton one-handed at the second slip. He left with good judgement and scored sweet tucks in the middle-wicket.
Rohit had some great drives but Robinson could have won lbw on 39 if England hadn't delayed the review. Root had already called for it and the 15 seconds had expired.
Rohit was playing against one from Robinson when the review failed to save him. The ball was clipping his leg stump.
Kohli is not able to score a half-century in eight innings or a hundred in 18 innings, but he looked uneasy in 99th wicket.
England is forced to work hard
England could not have expected the third day of the series to be as one-sided. However, they put in a lot of effort and did not get the wickets that they wanted. The home team was able to get past the outside edge time and again.
Overton was the pick among the bowlers. He delivered a 10-over spell either way, which was rewarded with the wicket of Rahul.
Sam Curran was the only disappointment. Root only used him for one of the 37 first overs. And when Root gave him a longer spell, it was costly.
Moeen Ali's off spin was easily overlooked in the cloudy conditions. Root was forced to bowl 12 overs together at the end.
Root was able to get one to tear through Kohli at one point. This suggests that spin could become a factor on Saturday or Sunday.
England will benefit from the availability of a second ball when play resumes.
