Ashwin's injury major roadblock between India and victory

If Ashwin is not able to bowl long spells then the Indian seamers will have to take more responsibility on a Day 4 track which has lost the zip it had at the start of the Test match.

However, Cheteshwar Pujara did not give out much about Ashwin’s injury but said the management hopes he will bowl. “I hope he will bowl on Day 4. He did bowl a couple of overs last night and the ball was turning,” Pujara said.

India’s premiere spinner R Ashwin has problems with his right hip that may hinder him to bowl at full tilt in the final two days of the Test match, leaving India with only four seamers to attack England.

Ashwin had gone off the field during England’s first innings and was seen trying to bowl in the indoor nets. He was back in the field after about 45 minutes but wasn’t required to bowl.

The animated discussions between head coach Ravi Shastri and the Indian support staff during that time gave rise to the speculations of Ashwin’s injury being a serious one.

Ashwin, in the couple of overs that he bowled last night, was in a lot of discomfort immediately after going through his delivery stride.

At the moment there is a slim chance of that happening as one of India’s main weapons is not a 100% fit.

India are favourites to win the third Test. With a daunting target of 521, England would need to rewrite history to stop India from winning this Test match. It, therefore, won’t be an exaggeration to say that it’s only a matter of time before India bowl England out.

England went to stumps on Day 3 at 23 for no loss with both the openers Alastair Cook and Keaton Jennings negotiating the fiery spell by Indian seamers. India need , wickets to keep the series alive. But for that to happen, the hosts need all its five bowlers to fire.