4th Test Day 1 Eng v Ind: England nudge ahead on action-packed day

On a hectic action-packed 13-wicket day, England just about nudged ahead of India on the opening day of the fourth Test at The Oval on Thursday. India were bowled out for 191 after being asked to bat. Later, towards the end of the day, England finished on 53 for three still 138 runs behind the visitors.

Earlier, India after being put into bat were bowled out for 191. The top-scorer for India was all-rounder Shardul Thakur (57: 36b, 60m, 7x4, 3x6). He rallied the score for India after the visitors had slipped to 127 for seven. India captain Virat Kohli (50: 96b, 133m, 8x4) held the innings together. India had slipped to 39 for three. Thereafter Kohli added 30 runs for the fourth wicket with Ravindra Jadeja who had been promoted up the order. A middle-order collapse followed.

It took Thakur's whirlwind effort to bring things back on track for India. Thakur added 63 runs for the eighth wicket with Umesh Yadav. But after Thakur fell the tail collapsed without a fight.

For England the wicket-takers were Chris Woakes (4-55) and Ollie Robinson (3-38).

Later, when England began their reply, they lost their openers in the same over to Jasprit Bumrah. Dawid Malan added 46 runs for the third wicket with captain Joe Root. Towards the end of the day, Root fell to Umesh Yadav bringing India back into the contest. Craig Overton as nightwatchman and Malan (26 batting) were at crease when stumps were drawn. Bumrah (2-15) and Yadav (1-15) were the key wicket-takers for India.

India finish the first day on a high after a solid bowling performance.#WTC23 | #ENGvIND | https://t.co/zRhnFiKhzZ pic.twitter.com/4YuwlSZJLU

— ICC (@ICC) September 2, 2021

India made couple of changes to their XI from the previous Test as they brought back Shardul Thakur and Mohammed Shami in place of an injured Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami. England also made two changes as they brought in Ollie Pope in place of an absent Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes replaced Sam Curran.

Match Summary
India 1st Innings: 191 (61.3)
Fall of wickets: 1-28 (Rohit Sharma-8.6 ov), 2-28 (KL Rahul-13.5 ov), 3-39 (Cheteshwar Pujara-19.4 ov), 4-69 (Ravindra Jadeja-29.6 ov), 5-105 (Virat Kohli-42.5 ov), 6-117 (Ajinkya Rahane-49.5 ov), 7-127 (Rishabh Pant-52.6 ov), 8-190 (Shardul Thakur-60.6 ov), 9-190 (Jasprit Bumrah-61.1 ov), 10-191 (Umesh Yadav-61.3 ov)

England 1st Innings: 53-3 (17)
Fall of wickets: 1-5 (Rory Burns-3.2 ov), 2-6 (Haseeb Hameed-3.6 ov), 3-52 (Joe Root-15.3 ov)

End of Day 1: England trail by 138 runs

Scorecard

Playing XI
England: Rory Burns, Haseeb Hameed, Dawid Malan, Joe Root (captain), Ollie Pope, Jonny Bairstow (wicket-keeper), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Craig Overton, Ollie Robinson, James Anderson

India: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj

Match Details

Toss: England, elected to field
Venue: The Oval, London
Start time: 1100 hrs (UK Time)
Match officials: Alex Wharf, Richard Illingworth (On-field umpires); Michael Gough (TV Umpire); Mike Burns (Reserve Umpire); Chris Broad (Match-referee)