India vs England 5th Test, Day 3 Highlights: Pujara, Pant hold fort as India lead by 257 runs at Edgbaston

India
ended
Day
3
on
top
as
they
headed
into
the
penultimate
day
with
a
strong
257-run
lead
with
seven
wickets
in
hand.
After
the
Indian
pacers
bowled
out
England
for
284
in
61.3
overs,
Cheteshwar
Pujara’s
half-century
saw
India
put
themselves
in
a
strong
position
at
Edgbaston.

On
a
day
when
Jonny
Bairstow,
who
took
time
to
settle
down,
and
then
went
on
to
score
a
sizzling
hundred,
it
was
the
visiting
Indian
side
who
find
themselves
at
the
top.

1

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After
bowling
England
out,
India
lost
Shubman
Gill
early
in
their
second
innings.
But
despite
James
Anderson’s
first
over
strike
Pujara
and
first
innings
centurion
Rishabh
Pant
kept
India
on
course.

The
duo
stitched
together
an
ubeaten
fourth
wicket
stand
of
50
off
91
to
guide
India
to
125/3
at
the
end
of
day’s
play.
Pant
(30
not
out)
and
Pujara
(50
not
out)
remained
unbeaten
for
the
visiting
side
after
45
overs
of
play
in
India’s
second
innings.

Earlier,
England
resumed
the
day
with
five
wickets
down
with
Bairstow
and
skipper
Ben
Stokes
at
the
crease.
The
inform
Bairstow
lifted
the
hosts
out
of
the
woods
along
with
Stokes
(25).
The
pair
rebuild
England’s
innings
with
a
sixth
wicket
partnership
of
66
off
75.

After
Shardul
Thakur
handed
India
the
breakthrough
with
Stokes’ wicket,
Sam
Billings
and
Bairstow
scored
the
highest
partnership
of
England’s
first
innings.
The
duo
troubled
the
Indian
bowlers
with
a
seventh
wicket
stand
of
92
off
105.
A
superb
bowling
change
by
India’s
stand-in
skipper
Jasprit
Bumrah,
saw
the
set
Bairstow
caught
by
Virat
Kohli
at
slip
and
that
set
England’s
wickets
tumbling.

While
the
first
session
of
Day
3
saw
just
one
wicket
fall,
the
second
session
accounted
for
five
wickets.
It
was
once
again
the
Indian
fast
bowlers
who
were
responsible
for
all
England
wickets.

Mohammed
Siraj
turned
in
the
best
figures
with
a
four-wicket
haul,
while
Bumrah
picked
up
three.
Shami
accounted
for
two
wickets,
while
Thakur
picked
up
the
big
wicket
of
Stokes
to
bowl
England
out
for
284
in
61.3
overs
and
hand
India
a
lead
of
132
runs.

With
a
comfortable
cushion,
India
got
off
to
a
shaky
start
losing
opener
Gill
in
the
very
first
over.
Though
England
kept
themselves
in
contention
with
crucial
wickets
of
Hanuma
Vihari
(11)
and
Virat
Kohli
(20),
the
visitors
ended
the
day
on
a
strong
note.

With
Pant
and
Pujara
at
crease
and
seven
wickets
in
hand
with
a
lead
of
over
250
runs,
Bumrah’s
side
find
themselves
in
a
strong
position.