(Cricket news) With the series level at 1-1 the teams travelled to Oval for the 4th Test. Joe Root won the toss and put India into bat because of the overcast conditions and it paid off. England got India out for 191 runs in the 1st innings with Virat Kohli and Shardul Thakur scoring half centuries. Jasprit Bumrah and Umesh Yadav led the bowling and picked up 3 early wickets.
In the first 15 minutes India looked very comfortable as the ball wasn't moving around too much. It was only when Chris Woakes was brought into the attack the ball started playing tricks. Woakes picked up Rohit Sharma in his very first over. Ollie Robinson trapped KL Rahul shortly after. Cheteshwar Pujara occupied the crease for a while but was dismissed after chasing James Anderson's out-swinger outside on the 5th stump. Ravindra Jadeja was sent up the order ahead of Ajinkya Rahane and Rishabh Pant presumably to get a left and right hand combination going.
The plan didn't work as Jadeja was dismissed on 10 by Woakes. Virat Kohli looked like his old self as he got himself to 50 playing some exquisite cover drives and a couple of mesmerizing on drives. Kohli did ride his luck when a simple catch was dropped in the slip cordon. The Indian fan's dream of Kohli's 71st century was shattered when Ollie Robinson dismissed the Indian captain for 50. Rahane and Pant didn't trouble the scorers much as they were dismissed by Craig Overton and Woakes respectively.
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Shardul Thakur scored 57 off just 36 balls hitting 7 fours and 3 massive sixes. Thakur's technique might not have been by the book but was sure entertaining. He broke Ian Botham's record of fastest Test fifty on English soil. Shardul Thakur's power hitting was supported by Umesh Yadav on the other end. The Indian tail once again scored crucial runs which made their total somewhat respectable.
The Indian bowlers had a massive task ahead with only 191 runs on the board. In the 4th over Jasprit Bumrah got rid of both the openers. Rory Burns played on a good length delivery while Haseeb Hameed chased a short ball and edged it to Pant. Joe Root and Dawid Malan added 46 runs and looked like they would take the game away from India. Umesh Yadav had other ideas as he bowled an absolute peach of a ball to get rid of Joe Root just 2 overs before stumps. Craig Overton came in as a night watchman and played out the rest of the day.
The game is in the balance mainly because Joe Root isn't at the crease anymore. India need to get quick wickets in the first session of day 2. The wicket is already getting flatter and Jadeja could be very dangerous in the 4th innings if India set a stiff target.
Player of the day: Chris Woakes
Returning from a long injury, Woakes got straight back to business by getting wickets of Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur. He also produced an edge of Virat Kohli's but the catch was dropped in the slip cordon. Replacing Sam Curran in the side, Woakes has given a massive boost to this English side and would be looking to do the same with the willow.
