Just as we shut down, here is Ali Martin’s report from day two.
Waiting for some quotes, but I’m not sure we’re going to get any. So I’ll leave you with this - thanks for all your emails and tweets, sorry I didn’t get a chance to use them all. See you tomorrow!
Joe Root goes to 200 with a six.
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) February 6, 2021
What a cricketer!#INDvENG pic.twitter.com/BrXS2lgnGP
No higher praise than this:
What an incredible double ton from @root66 . One of the finest knocks played by an Overseas batsmen in India. Amazing display of focus, responsibility and technique. To score 3 consecutive 100’s out of which 2 are 200 is no mean achievement. #class #INDvsENG @StarSportsIndia pic.twitter.com/aA2ICbm4y9
— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) February 6, 2021
Joe Root will sleep happy; a magnificent double-century under his belt, a quick-fire 82 from Stokes, a get-your-eye in 30 from Pope and irritating tail-ending from Leach and Bess. India never gave up, though plagued by no-balls, and late wickets prevented England from turning huge into mammoth, but India will still have to make 350 to avoid the follow-on. Intrigue up intrigue, play starts early tomorrow morning, don’t miss a beat!
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Close
180th over: England 555-8 ( Leach 6, Bess 28) A drone shot shows elongated shadow stretching towards the red-brick pitch. Bumrah takes the last over - ANOTHER no ball, four leg byes and Bess safely negociates the final ball. Four wickets for 101 runs in this session and a job well done.
179th over: England 550-8 ( Leach 6, Bess 28) Just one run off Ashwin, another no-ball, signalled by that rather nasty alarm. I can’t work out if you would be able to hear it as a spectator or it is just for the television audience/umpires. One over to go.
“As an Irishman I can’t read India’s sponsor as anything other than bejaysus,” writes Niall Mullen. “And, bejaysus, what an innings it was from Root.”
178th over: England 549-8 ( Leach 6, Bess 28) A weary Bumrah is hauled back for a last few overs before the close. Bess immediately jabs him through gully for four.
And to add to Jim’s question (over 177), Channel four just flashed up India’s batting line up. Two have Test averages in the fifties, and seven above forty.
177th over: England 545-8 ( Leach 6, Bess 24) Have some soft (unsalted) butter on that cinnamon bagel... Jack Leach twinkles down the pitch and lofts Sundar over mid-off for four.
Asks Jim: Why hasn’t Root declared? Get a few overs in with Archer and Anderson surely?
I think it is the memory of the last time England played a Test in Chennai, when England made 400 plus but lost by an innings.
176th over: England 541-8 ( Leach 2, Bess 24) Bess takes advantage of a looser line from Ishant and waves the ball down to the fine-leg boundary.These two are really raising the irritation factor for India.
Morning Tanya, taps John Swan.
On the subject of laws, Muphry’s is a belter. It states that any post or note you add, pointing out somebody’s spelling or grammatical error, will itself contain at least one spelling or grammar error.
Live cricket on telly, though, eh?
Except, if you marry a pedant.
175th over: England 537-8 ( Leach 2, Bess 20) Rohit Sharma drops Bess, the easiest of good-time catches at mid-wicket and Virat Kohli turns him to stone. Washington Sundar draws a smile onto his face.
174th over: England 535-8( Leach 2, Bess 19) Ishant again, shadow shooting off screen to the left. He hits Bess plum in the box and the Indians appeal for lbw, then four leg byes to the fine-leg boundary. He leaves the next ball, Buttler-esque - but with more judgement/luck. A Huge lbw shout to finish the over, hit on his front pad. Bess riding his luck like a rodeo.
“There’s no such thing as a law of jinx, much though we would like it. There is such a thing as confirmation bias, though, where we don’t remember all the times non-connected action didn’t happen. If you’re into the history of religion, you can see this cause and coincidence effect in a lot of Ancient Roman divine functions.” Thank you oh wise one (John Starbuck)
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173rd over: England 531-8( Leach 2, Bess 19) Sundar reels through another, just a single from Bess to long-on.
An email arrives in the form of a harrumph from Sohid Ahmed: “The more erudite amongst us know there is only one true law - Murphy’s
law. Things will go wrong in a way no one imagined. You are welcome.”
172nd over: England 530-8( Leach 2, Bess 18) Sharma fancies Leach with his first ball, huge appeal as he pushes inelegantly forward. But the umpire says no, no review, and I’m not sure it hit anyway. The swathes of concrete seating fall into shadow round the ground but it still looks sweltering out there. Ishant has lost his pony-tail, now long on top like a young Shahid Afridi and he runs his hand through it between balls. A maiden.
171st over: England 530-8( Leach 2, Bess 18) The Somerset duo survive a quieter over from Sundar. Leach should bat higher than Archer, no?
Chris Purcell, folds his arms with a quizzical look at the mathematicians “i don’t know about the law of averages, it’s probably more psychological than mathematical. But there is certainly a law of jinx : the other half came downstairs, two wickets, then they came in from the car, something to do with the manifold gasket, two wickets! What are the averages for that?”
170th over: England 528-8( Leach 1, Bess 17) And to finish the over, Leach prods at one that falls just short of second slip. Fantastic bowling by Ishant.
is not a hat-trick..
Jack Leach squirts it through gully for a single and it turns out to be a no-ball anyway.
Hat-trick ball....
Ishant on his 299th wicket...
WICKET! Archer b Ishant 0
A golden duck! A rapid ball that nips in and catches a static Archer on the crease. Farewell off stump.
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WICKET! Buttler b Ishant 30
Oh my, a dismissal of nightmares. Buttler leaves one from Ishant inches in slightly that goes on to clip his off stump, which amuses Kohli very much.
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169th over: England 521-6 ( Buttler 26, Bess 17) A Sundar Maiden - the sort of cocktail I fancy, pink, with cherries, in the post-lockdown future.
@tjaldred I'm not one for hyperbole but if they don't rename every cricket ground in Yorkshire in honour of Joe Root I will be most disappointed...
— phil withall (@phil_withall) February 6, 2021
168th over: England 521-6 ( Buttler 26, Bess 17) Bess hits two consecutive fours off Nadeem, who rolls out an unfortunate sixth no ball of the innings.
Hi Tanya, writes Abhi Saxena: “This might be a good time for putting my engineering degree to use. Law of averages is not a real thing, the mathematical version is called the law of large numbers which says that on repeated measurements of a quantity the average tends to the expected value. Note that expected value is a precalculated thing for that law. I am not sure what the expected value for batting performances is, but for guys like Root and Kohli we can safely say it would be pretty high”
167th over: England 511-6 ( Buttler 26, Bess 8) Buttler, inside edge off Sundar, four! Shackles starting to loosen.
166th over: England 506-6 ( Buttler 22, Bess 7) Accidentally sat on the zapper and rewound the telly - a 21st century hazard. So can’t tell you much, except a four for Bess.
A huge thank you to David Ward. “Maths nerd here. The law of averages is a thing, but it’s not what people think it is. There’s no corrective effect that makes a batsman “due” a bad run, or a good score. The strict statement of the law is essentially the same as saying that if you toss a coin a massively large number of times, the proportion of heads will approach 50%. That’s not because a run of heads makes a tail more likely, but because natural variation dilutes all the unusual times when you get a long run of heads, possibly with an equivalent glut of tails. Maybe this outstanding Root form is actually the correction to his unremarkable record since becoming captain?”
165th over: England 501-6 ( Buttler 22, Bess 3) Sundar celebrates his return to the attack with a filthy full-toss that a slightly alarmed Bess plods back. Three balls later, he spins one past Buttler’s inelegant prod, which is gathered by Pant. A huge shout by Sundar, and the rest of the team, but, oh, India have no reviews left. Buttler, calm as you like, drives the next one for four to bring up England’s 500. And that’s drinks!
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164th over: England 496-6 ( Buttler 18, Bess 2) Bess doubles his score with a smart single to mid-wicket.
163rd over: England 495-6 ( Buttler 18, Bess 1) Ashwin fires through another maiden; Buttler tries to break the narrative with a cover-drive but no joy.
Tom van der Gucht muses, “I read David Hindle’s email about Root gunning for the record of most runs in a calendar year with interest. I too had been musing on it only for the pessimist within to surface: you see, I’m starting to worry that the laws of averages is going to strike.If he’s currently in a massive purple patch then he’s likely to have a massive trough up ahead that’ll bring his average back down to the very English mid 40’s... What he should be doing is banking these runs and letting them out a little at a time so he has some left for the Ashes.”
Is there any mathematical proof for the law of averages? Is it an actual thing?
162nd over: England 495-6 ( Buttler 18, Bess 1) Bess and Buttler plod on, clip, clop, defend. And repeat. It’s a patience game now.
“Morning Tanya, it’s nice to see the aerial shots of Chennai and the sea. My wife and I visited India in early 2017 and spent a lovely week out there. Highly recommend the old fort, train station and Anna Park right opposite this stadium by the beach, but it’s a great place to wander (in the shade!) Don’t recommend crossing a 6 lane highway in a tuk-tuk into oncoming traffic! England were out there at the time but while we didn’t catch an international, we did see MSD captaining India for the last time in a one-day warm-up in Mumbai. Magic.” Guy Hornsby, I’m jealous!
161st over: England 493-6 ( Buttler 17, Bess 1) A couple of uncharacteristically loose balls from Ashwin are pounced on by Buttler, one through extra cover, one a bit squarer. Two boundaries, pressure released. And another piece slots into the jigsaw.
160th over: England 485-6 ( Buttler 9, Bess 1) Nadeem finds some extra bounce as Bess prods just short of short leg. Another maiden.
The magnificently monikered Peregrin Hodgkinson writes“Hey! Despite Root’s performance I feel the only way to get my kids interested in cricket is for an anime to be made of the sport. It certainly converted them to volleyball (Haikyuu) and got them running (Run with the Wind). Are there any Japanese animators following the OBO that would like to help launch the sport in Japan and my house?”
159th over: England 485-6 ( Buttler 9, Bess 1) A wily maiden from Ashwin to Buttler. The new ball is due in an over, should Kohli fancy it, which he probably won’t, tasty for the spinners as this old one suddenly is.
158th over: England 485-6 ( Buttler 9, Bess 1) Nadeem now having the pleasure of bowling at an England slightly under pressure, just a couple of sweeps from Buttler. The camera pans to the England dressing-room where the analyst’s laptop has an NHS heart sticker.
“Just following the theme of impact of the coach. Silverwood was by no means a shoe-in for the job of coaching under-performing second division Essex when Paul Grayson left in 2015. It’s been a meteoric progression since then. One senses the chemistry between him and players is contributing heavily to this period of success” writes Henry Lubienski.
157th over: England 482-6 ( Buttler 6, Bess 1) A teasing over from Ashwin, but Buttler snitches a single to mid-on from the last ball.
156th over: England 481-6 ( Buttler 5, Bess 1) Bess off the mark with an easy single.
155th over: England 478-6 ( Buttler 4, Bess 0) Just a squirted single to Buttler, a quick over by Ashwin, England barely a chance to draw breath.
154th over: England 478-6 ( Buttler 3) A funky stat for you - this is Buttler’s 50th Test, and Root’s hundred. A fraction that blows my mind. But forget all that - Root goes, after a wonderful , masterly innings, but England need to be very careful here now. Kohli, who shook Root’s hand as he left the field, is a master at these situations.
WICKET! ROOT lbw Nadeem 218
The big one! Nadeem grabs the captain with a ball that straightens, and hits the front pad. Root reviews more in hope than conviction but to no avail. What an innings. Now this is interesting.
153rd over: England 474-5 (Root 217, Buttler 1) Yikes! Buttler, beaten in the flight, inside edges his first ball to mid-wicket where it just falls short of the diving fielder.
“Has anyone ever run the stats to see how many of Roots unconverted 50’s came under Trevor Bayliss’ coaching?” asks Rory Beard. “Basically I think his over aggressive style of coaching cost Root a lot of his conversions - specially when you picture how many times he got out edging a wide ball outside the off stump? Anyway I thought it was interesting. And I would read an article about it if it was true. :).”
Rory, I’m going to pass your email on to Rob - he eats those questions for elevenses.
WICKET! Pope lbw Ashwin 34
Ashwin slides one through and hits Pope on the back pad, and he slumps awkwardly which must encourage the umpire to raise his finger. Pope doesn’t bother to use one of England’s plethora of reviews.
152nd over: England 472-4 (Root 216, Pope 34) And with a dab off Nadeem, Root overtakes Alec Stewart to become England’s third-highest Test run scorer, behind only those Essex boys Gooch and Cook. He’s passed Pietersen, Gower and Stewart in the last three Tests.
151st over: England 469-4 (Root 214, Pope 33) Pope’s eye seems well and truly in with a charming reverse-paddle for two, before he miscue’s a rank full-toss from Ashwin that surprises everyone, bowler, batsman and Rishant Pant who staggers the wrong way in chase.
150th over: England 465-4 (Root 214, Pope 29) Pope drives at Bumbrah and gets a thick-outside edge that flies through the lonely slip-cordon for four; then a clip off his twinkly-toes. Bumrah’s perserveres; clockwork doll action imperfectly perfect.
Good Morning Tanya,. Hello Sam Charlton!
Few things are more wonderful than watching England do so well abroad.
Re: the weather and the seasons. Frankly I am distraught, I was hoping for my second walk in as many days since my newly allowed freedom from catching COVID. In Leeds it is biblical at the moment. A nice spring day would be been perfect. Perhaps I am too optimistic for February.
I take back my talk of spring. Is now disgusting in Manchester too. Glad to hear you’ve recovered from COVID - don’t overdo it now
149th over: England 459-4 (Root 213, Pope 24) It’s the big boy double act as Ashwin rolls in from the other end. A tall man, stocky for a spinner. Pope and Root are watchful on a peach coloured pitch, a gentle wind ruffling Root’s shirt.
148th over: England 458-4 (Root 212, Pope 24) Kohli throws the ball to Bumrah for a post-tea blast. His second ball is a no-ball, cue the no-ball siren. Seriously, someone now has a job of watching the crease every ball to check if the bowler oversteps. ICC work-experience? You wouldn’t want to be lumbered with that all year round. Bumrah attempts to get the ball switched, I don’t blame him, the ball seems to have eaten its own seam. Four from the over.
A lovely email from Ian Wilson:
“Afternoon Tanya, Ian from Side Turkey watching the cricket and following your comments with 20C of sunshine here, just thinking and reminiscing about another time in my cricket watching life back to May and Cowdrey in the 50s and early 60s, with their patience when compiling scores, reminds me of Joe Root the way he is now building his innings with patience, concentration and great skill, for his team not just for his own ego, a truly talented young man setting a great example to his team and all young cricketers.”
FINAL SESSION
The players are out for the final session and, as Alastair Cook said when they switched back from the studio, “England have India just where they want them.”
Simon Hughes has set up an analyst’s studio in his bedroom - blue walls, a Durham T-shirt and a Middlesex sweater in the background. I think he’s great and I think he was saying some really interesting things about Joe Root but unfortunately I can’t tell you anything as EVERYONE IS TALKING very loudly in the living room and I can’t hear a thing.
The drollest email of the year drops by, from William Lane “Are we going to start becoming frustrated at Root’s inability to turn 200s in to 300s? Feels as though if you took the captaincy off him he would be able to break free from the shackles of responsibility and start making some proper runs.”
TEA
147th over: England 454-4 (Root 209, Pope 24) Rohit serves up a whoopy-doopy full-toss to end the session and a a grinning Joe Root dabs him to long-on. He’s got plenty to grin about
David Hindle writes: “Early days yet, but in a calendar year where England are scheduled to play a record number of tests, after just 2.5 of them, Root has >600 runs and counting. He is on course to obliterate the record for test runs in a calendar year. Currently 1788 by Mohammad Yousuf. Root is going way past 2000 at this rate. Where did Joe find this version of himself?”
I’ll leave you to ponder that as the players walk off the pitch: 99 runs in the session, one wicket lost, one double-century pocketed. In the shade of England’s dug-out, the players stand to applaud their O Captain! My captain!
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146th over: England 451-4 (Root 206, Pope 22) Channel four have now put an arrow next to the facing batsman’s name, which is an improvement on yesterday. England reach 450 - fifty short of Rob’s requirement of 500, 250 short of Joe Root’s dreams of 700. England have scored 96 runs so far this session. A wafty sweep from Root ends the over.
145th over: England 449-4 (Root 206, Pope 22) Rohit Sharma bowling before tea wasn’t in Virat Kohli’s gameplan - I imagine copper-plated handwriting in an immaculately kept notebook. Four from it
“I can’t see Spring coming just yet, it’s more like dawn is a slow seepage.” says John Starbuck. “On the other hand, I’m getting my first Covid vaccination this afternoon, so there’s some promise of renewal.”
That, John, is wonderful news.
144th over: England 445-4 (Root 204, Pope 20) Nadeem whizzes through another over that Pope and Root milk for five runs.
143rd over: England 431-4 (Root 202, Pope 17) Runs beget runs beget runs - as Joe Root leaves those doldrum years in a locked cupboard somewhere in Yorkshire. He has surely earned a recall to THE BIG THREE FOUR now.
JOE ROOT DOUBLE HUNDRED!!!
Root dances to Ashwin, slices his bat through the air and the ball soars over long-on for six! He takes his helmet off, kisses the badge and raises both hands in the air, the broadest of broad smiles on his face. What an innings! What a man!
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142nd over: England 431-4 (Root 194, Pope 16) Tip and run by England off Nadeem until a HUGE lbw appeal against Ollie Pope off the last ball, but India have used up all their reviews. And anyway, he got an inside edge
“Hi Tanya hope all well”. Hi Danny Fontana!
“Went to bed dreaming of two things:
1) Joe Root to still be at the crease when I woke up 2) my youngest to not get out of bed til 7.30am
I’m no betting man but I guess the odds would have been about 300-1 on both sides of the bet coming good.
Although I’m no richer of pocket, I certainly feel richer of soul. What a player! What a daughter!”
141st over: England 428-4 (Root 192, Pope 15)
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140th over: England 424-4 (Root 190, Pope 13) Root reverse-paddles Sundar for four, as if using some kind of elaborate tool in a woodworking studio, as my son shows me a huge lump he’s grown after running into a wall.
David Melhuish agrees with Jesse Linklater’s memories of Galle
“Indeed, those drone shots of Galle were so very soothing, dreamlike and almost other-worldly. Not been out of this small area (Macau is but 30 sq km) for over 13 months. Counting ...
As we absorbed the action, I made mental notes on the second destination (after UK) when this COVID is over. Wistfully imagining soaking up a few days test cricket, short stroll from our rented villa (pool, games room) close to the ground. Checking out the local eateries in the evening ...
Yardda yadda, etc and so on .
So ,,, yeah. Do miss.”
139th over: England 416-4 (Root 184, Pope 11) Pope has a rush of blood, and nearly runs out Root and three balls later, Ashwin appeals for a catch at leg-slip. Kohli reviews with barely a second left on the clock.... the ball seems to have missed the bat... and, yes, the glove... as Pope gets down on one knee to sweep... NOT OUT!
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138th over: England 415-4 (Root 183, Pope 11) Beautiful from Ollie Pope, a short jab off Sundar that slides past mid-on to kiss the boundary rope. The camera pans to Virat Kohli, he seems pale behind those inscrutable sunglasses.
137th over: England 410-4 (Root 182, Pope 7) Root has had enough of this, slamming Ashwin flat back over his head for four; Pope slaps himself into the ground to avoid being hit. Then a dangerously-quick single.
136th over: England 404-4 (Root 177, Pope 7) Six beautiful fat dots from Sundar, Pope watchful. India whizzing through these overs with intent.
Gary Smith types from Marseille “Morning Tanya, you want murky? Down here in Marseille we have the Sirocco rattling along at around 70 kph, and a very murky, yellowy orange sky due to several zillion microscopic bits of the Sahara Desert being suspended up there....it’s orange car day :-/”
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135th over: England 404-4 (Root 177, Pope 7) The scoring rate has slowed to a crawl since Stokes’ dismissal. But that’s ok. Put the kettle on for me will you?
134th over: England 403-4 (Root 177, Pope 6) Ollie Pope tips a reverse-sweep into the covers off young Washington Sundar - a name straight out of Hamilton.
Adam Levine, stretches and types: “There must be a portrait of Joe Root in the long room at Lord’s decaying and covered in mould. The weight of expectation early on in his career, the pressures of captaincy, the endless touring, none of it seems to age him or dent his absolutely relentless joy and enthusiasm at playing the game he so obviously adores. What a player. What a captain. What a man. “
I agree, he is admirable in almost every way.
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133rd over: England 401-4 (Root 176, Pope 5) Ashwin resumes, replacing Nadeem, high right arm. Root retreats and calmly defends, before picking up a single off the last ball of the over. So far in 2021, Root has 600 runs and his average in India is now higher than Kohli’s. His career average has also crept back over 50....
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Thanks Rob! That’s a nice round number to take over with on a murky Saturday morning. And, and.... at 745am it is light enough to see the colour of the house over the road’s front door. Spring really is a-coming.
132nd over: England 400-4 (Root 175, Pope 5) Another single from Root takes England to their new benchmark: it’s the seventh time in 15 Tests under Chris Silverwood that they have reached 400 in the first innings.
It’s time for drinks, and for me to hand over to Tanya. You can contact her at tanya.aldred.freelance@theguardian.com or @tjaldred. Bye!
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131st over: England 399-4 (Root 174, Pope 5) Pope, beaten in the flight I think, inside-edges Nadeem into the leg side for a single. He comes down the wicket later in the over, but can’t get to the pitch of the ball so settles for a defensive stroke. This is another good contest, with Nadeem looking more confident than against Root and especially Stokes.
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130th over: England 395-4 (Root 172, Pope 4) Ishant replaces Bumrah, and Root flicks his first ball round the corner for another single. His batting today has been cold and clinical. Pope plays out the rest of the over, mainly by flicking straight deliveries to one of the leg-side fielders.
129th over: England 394-4 (Root 171, Pope 4) Pope is beaten again, this time while sweeping inelegantly at Nadeem. It’s a fine line, but at the moment he looks a little too keen to run before he can walk.
128th over: England 393-4 (Root 170, Pope 4) This is an important series for Pope, who had a slightly disappointing summer. He’s a class act, so he’ll expect to improve on a Test average of 38. Bumrah beats Pope with a beauty that turns him round and straightens sharply to hit him high on the back leg. Bumrah went up for caught behind but replays showed it missed the outside edge by a fair way. It was a stunning delivery from a consistently brilliant bowler.
127th over: England 392-4 (Root 169, Pope 4) Ollie Pope is the new batsman. He gets off the mark with a slightly risky stroke, slicing a cut through the vacant gully area for four.
“Is anyone else missing the endless shots of the boats in and around Galle harbour?” asks Jesse Linklater. “I found them very soothing.”
I mean, I hadn’t given it that much thought.
That was a lively innings from Stokes: 82 from 118 balls, with 10 fours and three sixes.
WICKET! England 387-4 (Stokes c Pujara b Nadeem 82)
Ben Stokes dies by the sword. He slog-swept Nadeem high towards deep backward square leg, where Pujara muffed a simple catch but was able to trap the ball in his chest/business area.
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126th over: England 387-3 (Root 168, Stokes 82) I think England will bat on until tomorrow if they have the option. Their best chance of winning this game is probably to score so many that they could enforce the follow-on without worrying about being Kolkataed. Bumrah, meanwhile, ends another good over with a sharp short ball that surprises Root. He shaped to pull and then thought better of it.
“Hi Rob,” says Ben Stechler. “Englishman living in Melbourne here, feel a bit apologetic having been spoilt with the Aus v India series, and now England turning starts into wins. Watching in the local pub, staying until Root gets out... let’s hope for a long evening! Anyway as much as I hope England win the series, is a subcontinent tour the best preparation for an Australian Ashes series, where pitches are vastly different? Of course Covid has played its part, but I can’t help but think the WI or SA pitches are better for getting used to pace and bounce in Australia. Plus I can’t handle us losing the Ashes over here again!”
What’s a ‘local pub’? As for the preparation, they don’t really get to choose as tours are scheduled according to the Future Tours Programme. I’m not sure it matters too much - I’d say the warm-up matches in Australia are far more important.
125th over: England 384-3 (Root 168, Stokes 79) England milk Nadeem for six runs in that over thanks to some smart placement and running.
In the last two years, Stokes averages 59 from 17 Tests; he should soon have a career average of over 40 for the first time since 2013.
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124th over: England 378-3 (Root 165, Stokes 76) Bumrah replaces Ishant, with India in urgent need of a wicket or seven. He tries a loopy slower yorker to Stokes, who waves it between mid-on and midwicket for four more. The next ball beats Stokes’ attempted pull; it was a bit too wide for the shot.
123rd over: England 373-3 (Root 164, Stokes 72) As well as England have played, we shouldn’t get carried away. In the last series in India they scored 537 in the first innings of the first Test, and lost 4-0.
Mind you, it’s tempting to lose the run of things when you see Stokes dance down the wicket to lift Nadeem down the ground for another big six. That’s his third of the innings, and he has raced to 72 from 106 balls.
“Bom dia Mr Smyth!” says Adam Hirst. “Your man Louis from over 97 was probably still up, judging by the time. If he wants some cricket today, he can head down The Corridor of Sun Certainty to the Sao Fernando Polo & Cricket Club where the magnificently cosmopolitan Carioca Cricket Club will be playing an internal match. We’ve missed our national and continental championships recently, but let’s hope 2021 brings more runs, not just for Joe Root. I’m not there sadly, a Carioca Exile back in the UK for Covid reasons. I’m off to Wigan instead.”
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122nd over: England 365-3 (Root 163, Stokes 65) There’s a bit of Allan Border in this innings from Root - not the style so much as the mentality, to bat until the cows come home without worrying too much about forcing the tempo. He has scored 35 from 92 balls this morning, including a drive through off for a couple in that over from Ishant.
“Hi Rob, from Paris,” says Alisdair Gould. “It is a long road that never turns,” but what a llllloooonnngg road this journey has been. I was 50 on Monday. I would never have guessed as a boy that the West Indies would ever be a weak side, nor that I would be reading ‘over by over’ reports of cricket in India on a tiny screen, or that we would have a captain able to deal with subcontinent spinners on a wicket that has turn. (What a great tie up of the word turn. And how great life is as a cricket pilgrimage.)”
121st over: England 363-3 (Root 161, Stokes 65) Shahbaz Nadeem resumes his contest with Ben Stokes, with a slip and short leg in place. I’m surprised they don’t have a leg gully given how much the ball is spitting from the rough. Stokes misses a premeditated reverse sweep and is hit on the arm; then he flicks a short ball into the leg side for a single. That will frustrate Nadeem, who would have wanted a full over at Stokes. And the next ball will irritate him even more: it’s too short and Root forces it through point for four. He is batting delightfully.
“Hi Rob,” says Garry Sharp. “In that documentary the Test, there was an imperious, master-of-all-he-surveys character called Virat Kohli. I wonder if we are watching the same person now. He seems different. Although I don’t want to tempt fate, this could all change. Just an observation. Also, do we have a moral obligation to sit through all the ads on C4, as an acknowledgement of the great thing they’ve done for us?”
120th over: England 357-3 (Root 156, Stokes 64) A quiet first over from Ishant, just a leg-bye and a single to Stokes.
“Morning Rob,” says Adrian Neville. “Re: David Dowling being on the edge of a continent (over 112), I’m reading in bed from Kinsale, southwest Ireland, also on the edge of a continent. We even have a place at the edge of town called World’s End. (And another called Scilly with a Scilly Walk but that’s not yet relevant.) I’ll get up later and do my exercises in front of Channel 4. Stuff the T’ai Chi lessons for now.”
The players are back out on the field, and Ishant Sharma is coming on for Jasprit Bumrah.
“Hi Rob,” says Jack McCabe. “As someone who missed 2005 (both a mix of too young, and an Irish family who had no interest in cricket), it’s a pleasure and a privilege to watch Test cricket on free to air TV.
“I never had an opportunity to play or watch cricket of any sort till I went to university, where I caught the bug fully. A state comprehensive in the mid-2000s had neither the time or resources to encourage or teach cricket, and the sport became a symbol of privilege and inequality for years before I got a love for it. Accessibility to cricket, and the connotations of what that means, has always fascinated me. It may sound trite and meaningless, but it genuinely means a huge amount for cricket to make a conscious effort to try and attract fans away from its traditional base through this channel 4 deal. Hopefully Mambo No.5 won’t just be an anthem of nostalgia, but a call to increased participation and appreciation across the country. Maybe I’ll even manage to teach my family the rules (we managed to get halfway through the concept the ‘over’ during the recent Windies Test series before interest started to flag).”
Lunchtime reading
Lunch
119th over: England 355-3 (Root 156, Stokes 63) Sundar bowls an uneventful over to complete a brilliant morning for England, who scored 92 runs from 29.3 overs. They rode their luck a little - Stokes was dropped twice and Root survived a run-out chance - but generally played very well, with Stokes bullying the inexperienced pair of Shahbaz Nadeem and Washington Sundar. See you in 30 minutes for the afternoon session.
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118th over: England 354-3 (Root 155, Stokes 63) Four more to Stokes, timed through midwicket off Bumrah. This is starting to look slightly ominous for India. If Stokes is still batting at tea, they can forget about winning the game.
117th over: England 348-3 (Root 154, Stokes 59) Stokes is really going after the change spinners. He slog-sweeps Sundar for two boundaries in three balls, which takes him to 59 from only 91 balls. At one stage he had 18 from 38.
“On the other side of India, I sit in a cafe as the sun lashes the golden Kovalam beach and masala chai with a hearty omelette goes down a treat,” says Guy Perry. “I dream of Root whacking a big six from Chennai for me to reach out and catch. Go, Joe!!!”
Go, Joe? That’s another 2005 link.
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116th over: England 340-3 (Root 154, Stokes 51) Bumrah replaces Ashwin with just under 15 minutes remaining before lunch. Root works a single off the pads; he has happily played second fiddle this morning, hitting only a couple of boundaries to Stokes’s eight. Stokes gets a single later in the over, and then Root digs out another blistering inswinging yorker from Bumrah. Well played.
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115th over: England 338-3 (Root 153, Stokes 50) The offspinner Washington Sundar replaces Nadeem. His fourth ball kicks nastily at Root, who smiles partly because he’s having the time of his life generally and partly at the thought of what this pitch might do on days four and five.
There’s a lot to be said for cricket in the middle of the night. Entertainment for insomniacs. No risk of irritating the rest of the household with your cricket habit. pic.twitter.com/CvtJiApBvu
— Rhodri Marsden (@rhodri) February 6, 2021
114th over: England 337-3 (Root 152, Stokes 50)
113th over: England 336-3 (Root 151, Stokes 50) Stokes races to fifty with consecutive reverse-sweeps for four off Nadeem. It’s been an increasingly aggressive innings, mainly because of that rough outside his off stump: 73 balls, six fours, two sixes. England are in a fine position now, and should be safe from defeat if they can add another 400.
112th over: England 328-3 (Root 151, Stokes 42) Oof, Root survives a big run-out chance after Stokes takes a dodgy single into the leg side. Washington Sundar’s throw was really poor, on the half volley to Pant’s right. Had it been straight into his gloves, never mind a direct hit, Root would have gone.
“Reading you on the western edge of Vancouver Island, the western edge of a continent,” says David Dowling. “A link in the thin red leather line.”
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111th over: England 326-3 (Root 150, Stokes 41) Stokes misses a sweep at Nadeem and is hit on the pad outside the line of off stump. As Mark Butcher observers on Sky Channel 4, those two deliveries in the previous over have unnerved Stokes - and now he has been dropped for the second time in as many overs. Stokes reached outside off stump to hammer a sweep towards midwicket, where Pujara leapt to his left but couldn’t hang on. It was another extremely difficult chance.
An eventful over continues with Root pushing a single to reach his third 150+ score in as many Tests. Given his form between 2018-2020, that’s a pretty astounding and thoroughly heartwarming development. The over still isn’t done: Stokes clouts a slog-sweep for six off the final ball. Blimey.
110th over: England 316-3 (Root 149, Stokes 32) Now Stokes is dropped by Ashwin, a sharp return chance to his right. I think it hit him on the wrist in the end, but that’s more encouragement for India. Things are starting to happen. Things.
109th over: England 314-3 (Root 148, Stokes 31) Nadeem gets one to spit viciously out of the rough at Stokes, who is slightly startled but managed to glove the ball to safety on the leg side. The next ball also spits at Stokes, hitting him near the groin. That was a really encouraging over from India.
“Watching this from NZ,” says Conrad LaPointe. “It’s great to at last have a series that fits with a sane time schedule: 5pm start here, very civilized. Also get to watch the Super Bowl on Monday from midday, that is also a public holiday here (Waitangi Day). Good times.”
It’s our year!
ROOT IS NOT OUT! It was bouncing over the stumps, so India have lost two reviews in five balls. I think that one was fair enough, though.
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Root pushed outside the line of an arm ball from Nadeem and was hit on the front pad. It might be umpire’s call, but I reckon Root is in trouble.
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INDIA REVIEW FOR LBW AGAINST ROOT! This one looks close.
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108th over: England 313-3 (Root 147, Stokes 31) Just before that review, Root pushed a single to bring up an assured fifty partnership with Stokes. The standard of cricket from both teams this morning has been extremely high.
STOKES IS NOT OUT Yep, it hit him on the glove. Not out.
REVIEW FOR LBW AGAINST STOKES! This is an odd one. He tried to reverse-sweep Ashwin, missed and gloved the ball up in the air on the off side. Ashwin must have thought it hit his arm because he was keen to review for LBW.
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107th over: England 312-3 (Root 146, Stokes 31) Root, beaten in the flight by Nadeem, drives uppishly for a single. That was a crafty bit of bowling, and a reminder that England can’t get lazy against India’s weaker (sic) spinners. If you’re playing Test cricket for India in 2021, you are on the good side of competent.
“This is turning to be a good news day here in Macau,” says David Melhuish. “First day of our CNY hols with sun and azure blue skies; 55 and 66 looking fine fettle; 1.2 mil vaccines arriving by road from HK (pop here is approx 600,000). LOOKING UP.”
2021: it’s our year!
106th over: England 310-3 (Root 145, Stokes 30) Ashwin switches ends to replace Ishant. At the moment batting looks very comfortable for England, though history tells us you should never get too comfortable in India. I still think they need at least 500 in this innings.
105th over: England 308-3 (Root 144, Stokes 29) Stokes gets down on on knee to paddle Nadeem over his shoulder for a couple. He looks so comfortable at No5, a position in which he averages 51.
“Hey Rob,” says Daniel Bernstein. “I’ve got the St Peters (Brighton) U13 cricket team coming on for a team zoom cricket watch at 9am. Assuming he is still in (!) I was going to give them a ‘watch how Root sweeps the spinners’ masterclass. Why isn’t he doing what he did in Sri Lanka? What’s different about the Indian spinners?”
I didn’t see enough of yesterday’s play to be sure, but it looks like it’s only Ashwin that he is slightly reticent to sweep. This Cricviz piece is worth a read.
104th over: England 303-3 (Root 142, Stokes 26) Ishant goes around the wicket to Stokes, who puts him away for consecutive boundaries. The first was a beautiful, wristy stroke, flicked between mid-on and midwicket, and the second a confident square drive. Stokes, who is batting with serene authority, has 26 from 44 balls. Time for drinks.
“Hello from Winnipeg,” says John Corp. “Where it’s -24C and with the wind feels like -38C, so I’m keeping warm with a large brandy.”
I think I caught mild hypothermia just from reading that email.
103rd over: England 295-3 (Root 142, Stokes 18) The left-armer spinner Shahbaz Nadeem replaces Ashwin. Stokes plays a reverse-sweep first ball, a statement of... something. The commentators think Stokes is conscious of the rough outside his off stump and is trying to get on top of Nadeem from the start. A single brings Root on strike, and he sweeps crisply behind square for four.
“If he can stay in and get there, I can’t WAIT to see Stokes take on the support spinners,” says William Juba. “Could be in for fireworks. I appear to getting ahead of myself! I’ll try to stay in the moment. And then Butler the same when we’ve already scored 500 and Pope has his first subcontinental hundred...”
My suggested first-innings score of 20,000 is starting to look conservative.
102nd over: England 290-3 (Root 137, Stokes 17) Ishant has another LBW shout against Root, but again it was sliding past leg stump. Ishant is bowling beautifully here, particularly to Root, and that’s another maiden. England have scored 27 from 12.3 overs this morning; more than anything, that’s a reflection of some high-class bowling.
“Rio sounds nice,” sniffs Matt Bannerman. “Here in dark and chilly Oxford, the Beast from the East we are forecast for tomorrow holds out the prospect of that rare pleasure: watching cricket whilst the snow falls.”
101st over: England 290-3 (Root 138, Stokes 17) Stokes brings out the sweep for the first time today, pinging Ashwin over square leg for four.
“Hi Rob,” says Abhi Saxena. “This match is going to be fun. The result I expect will be decided on who plays this day and the next one better. I would imagine it to be spinning a lot on this dusty pitch by days four and five. Want Root to get 150 as he is such a likeable person but not too many, as otherwise the match will get very hard for the Indians. Will be interesting to see how England bowl. I think that will be quite crucial.”
I can’t believe I’m typing this, but England might win this match. They need a huge first-innings score - 500 minimum, ideally 20,000 - and then for the pitch to deteriorate. But it’s not beyond the realms.
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100th over: England 284-3 (Root 137, Stokes 12) Root inside-edges an inducker from Sharma for a single. There is a little bit of reverse swing, so England need to be careful against Ishant. India’s main three bowlers (Bumrah, Ishant, Ashwin) have bowled really well, going at just over two an over between them. The newer bowlers, Shahbaz Nadeem and Washington Sundar, went at almost four an over yesterday.
“Morning Rob,” writes Becky C. “Having made the decision yesterday to get up at 3.30 mainly because of the sheer amount of work I needed to get through that would be improved by having the cricket for company, with the ultimately futile thought that I’d ‘be able to finish work early’, I’m feeling surprisingly calm this morning. Maybe it’s the early morning hour inducing a sleep deprived calm but I was able to watch both Stokes’s six and Ashwin’s excellent next delivery with equal amounts of calm, a feeling that it was simply going to be alright. Have I reached a higher state of cricket consciousness?”
Higher State of Cricket Consciousness would be a great Josh Wink remix: all those insistent do doo doos supplemented by random bits of commentary from Henry Blofeld and Rob Key.
99th over: England 282-3 (Root 136, Stokes 11) “I’m here!” says Ian Jefferson. “Keeping an eye on your OBO from San Francisco. What else is there to do? Haven’t been more than a mile from my house all week. Cricket is keeping me sane.”
You and gazillions of others.“I’m here!” says Ian Jefferson. “Keeping an eye on your OBO from San Francisco. What else is there to do? Haven’t been more than a mile from my house all week. Cricket is keeping me sane.”
You and gazillions of others.
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98th over: England 280-3 (Root 135, Stokes 10) Ishant Sharma replaces Bumrah. He bowled excellently yesterday, particularly in that spell to Root just after lunch, and his third ball of the morning brings a biggish LBW appeal against Root. The umpire isn’t interested and Virat Kohli decides not to review. It was missing leg stump.
That’s another maiden, the third in a row. India are making England work really hard for their runs: we’ve had 17 in 8.3 overs this morning, and that includes a six from Stokes.
97th over: England 280-3 (Root 135, Stokes 10) Ashwin is starting to get some turn to Stokes, who shapes to go after one outside off stump and then aborts the stroke. Another maiden.
“Feeling a little lost in Rio de Janeiro right now,” says Louis Sturgess, “but feeling better for live cricket on the Guardian app! Root for 200?”
He’s playing well enough, though that doesn’t always count for much against an attack of this quality.
96th over: England 280-3 (Root 135, Stokes 10) Bumrah bowls a series of fullish induckers to Root, who defends immaculately. A maiden. He is batting obscenely well at the moment, perhaps as well as he has ever played.
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95th over: England 280-3 (Root 135, Stokes 10) Ashwin tosses one up to Stokes, who accepts the invitation and drives nonchalantly over long-off for six. Crikey. Ashwin responds with an excellent delivery that turns past the outside edge. This is already a cracking battle.
94th over: England 274-3 (Root 135, Stokes 4) Bumrah is getting a bit of movement; it might be reverse swing, even after only 14 overs. Root defends a couple of induckers and then steers a short ball between slip and gully for four. He looks in the mood for another paternal hundred.
93rd over: England 270-3 (Root 131, Stokes 4) A quiet over from Ashwin, one from it.
92nd over: England 269-3 (Root 130, Stokes 4) Root clips Bumrah off the pads for a single. He has already scored more Test runs in 2021 than he did last year, 555 to 464. Stokes hasn’t scored a run this year, and it almost stays that way for another 48 hours when Bumrah sends down a sizzling yorker from round the wicket. Stokes just gets his bat down in time to squeeze it wide of leg stump. That was a stunning delivery. Stokes gets off the mark next ball, guiding a boundary to third man.
91st over: England 264-3 (Root 129, Stokes 0) It’s R Ashwin from the other end. He has a slip and leg gully for Root, who pushes a single into the covers to get off the mark today. Ashwin can be deadly against left-handers so it’s no surprise to see him in the attack so early with Stokes at the crease. Ashwin has dismissed Stokes seven times in Tests, more than any other bowler. Stokes continues his watchful start by defending the last four balls of the over.
90th over: England 263-3 (Root 128, Stokes 0) The new batsman is Ben Stokes, who solidly defends his first delivery and ignores the next two outside off stump.
Jasprit Bumrah will open the bowling. He has three deliveries remaining in his 19th over, having dismissed Dom Sibley with what turned out to be the last ball of the day.
Pre-play reading
Preamble
Morning. When Chris Silverwood took over as England coach in 2019, he gave the Test team a simple challenge: to start making big first-innings scores again. Everyone in the media got very excited by England’s change of direction, as if Silverwood had invented penicillin rather than stated an eternal truth of Test cricket.
The important bit was not the message but whether Silverwood could get it across to a batting line-up that had become used to playing limited-overs Test cricket. He did, with almost immediate results. England are once again a grown-up batting team, and they gave another demonstration of their maturity on the first day in Chennai.
They reached 263 for three at the close, with Dom Sibley making 87 and the revitalised Joe Root an unbeaten 128. Both played superbly, and as a result England look in good shape to make 400 in the first innings for the seventh time in 15 Tests under Silverwood. That’s an impressive ratio – but there is one problem. In India, 400 isn’t always worth a damn.
We’ve all been told the scare story of Chennai 2016. England finished the first day on 284 for four, went on to post a big score of 477 – and were thrashed by an innings. A week earlier, they scored exactly 400 in the first innings at Mumbai – and you know the rest. That’s why Root, in his interview last night, spoke of trying to get 600 or even 700. Then, and only then, will they be able to relax in the knowledge that they are immune from defeat.
The first day, good as it was for England, didn’t really tell us anything about where this match is heading. By tonight we should have a much better idea.
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