LIVE SCORE | INDIA vs ENGLAND | 1st TEST | DAY 2

RAJKOT

FULL SCORECARD

 
India's top order have done the hard work to give the hosts a strong foundation. However, the shaky finish will surely inspire England. The home side still trail by 218 runs although there is plenty of batting to come. The visitors will hope to nip out a couple early on tomorrow to put further pressure on the Indians. India will know that one more partnership will get them to safety. Should be another absorbing day. Join us at 0930 IST for the fourth day's play. Till then, it's good bye from us.
With the pitch hardly offering anything barring the odd turning ball and minimal reverse swing, England's bowlers were made to toil hard. Woakes was the standout bowler while Broad was tidy too. One area where England's bowlers succeeded was in keeping a check on the run flow particularly after lunch. Among the spinners, Rashid was probably the most threatening but was underbowled by Cook. The surprise was to see Ali being ineffective as the Indians took the attack to him.
Double strike just before stumps giving England some respite but it has still been India's day. The hosts were driven by majestic tons from Pujara and Vijay after the early loss of Gambhir. The 209-run stand put India's innings in cruise control mode before Pujara departed to a loose shot. With his skipper Kohli for company, it seemed like Vijay would bat through till stumps before a lapse of concentration saw the latter walk back to the pavilion. The nightwatchman Mishra didn't last long either as England managed to end the day on a high.
Stumps at Day 3
108.3 Zafar  Ansari to Amit Mishra, OUT! Bowls it quicker around middle and off, turns in a bit. Mishra looks to negotiate it with the angle but gets an inside edge that lobs towards Haseeb again. He is alert out there and bends to his left to take a sharp catch in front of him.
OUT! Amit Mishra out caught off Zafar Ansari for 0
107.6: Adil Rashid to Murali Vijay, OUT! THE MARATHON KNOCK FROM VIJAY COMES TO AN END! Slips in a googly on a length on off, spins back in. Vijay goes back and looks to nudge it through but only manages to glove it towards the youngster Haseeb at short leg. He shows good reflexes and grabs a good catch. Crucial breakthrough for the English side!
OUT! Murali Vijay out caught off Adil Rashid for 126
100 overs: India: 292/0. Murali Vijay 117(288), Virat Kohli 8(34)
91.1 overs: Ben Stokes to Cheteshwar Pujara, OUT! Bowling change works! Shortish outside off, Pujara looks to ride the bounce with a cut but cannot keep the stroke down. Cook takes a sharp catch at wide slip. They are checking for the no ball but Stokes is fine. Seems like the all-rounder can do no wrong.
  OUT! Cheteshwar Pujara is out caught in the slips off Ben Stokes for 124 7th Test ton for Murali Vijay! 83.5 overs: Stuart Broad to Murali Vijay, FOUR! He does it! Fuller outside off, goes off the outside edge as Vijay looks to guide it towards third man. Flies past the diving slip fielder and goes away to the fence for a boundary. Brings up his century and what a knock it's been. Brilliant!
AP PHOTO 9th Test ton for Pujara. 80.3 overs: Chris Woakes to Cheteshwar Pujara, Back of a length outside off, Pujara bunts it to the right of the cover fielder. Gets that big single. Well played local lad! His wife and family are beaming in the stands. 80 overs: India 228/1. Murali Vijay 86(242), Chesteshwar Pujara 99(166) Moeen Ali to Murali Vijay, NOT OUT! Waste of a review eventually. Very full on off, Vijay looks to work it on the leg side and England feel that he is been hit on the boot. Appeal for lbw but turned down. Cook goes for the review. Replays show that it came right off the face off the bat. 79.5 overs: England have taken a review for lbw against Vijay. Welcome back for the final session of the day. Only 1 wicket has fallen in the 56 overs bowled. India will hope it stays that way for as much as possible. They are still another 309 runs behind and England will be hoping for an opening somewhere. The players and umpires are making their way out to the middle. MOEEN ALI to begin proceedings after tea. DAY 3, SESSION 3 England's bowlers were very disciplined with Broad being the standout with a very miserly spell. However, the tourists couldn't cause much trouble and had to be content by keeping a lid on the scoring rate. The odd ball has spun and there has been some reverse swing too but generally it's still remained a good batting pitch for those who are willing to apply themselves. England will hope to bottle down the runs and hope that India's batting implodes at some stage. Join us in a while for the final session. This session - 29 overs, 66 runs, 0 wickets. Another solid session for the Indians. Vijay and Pujara continued to grind the English bowling to dust without any real trouble. The latter did get a reprieve as he used DRS to successfully overturn an lbw decision against him. Apart from that, he hardly put a foot wrong and is just a run short of his 9th Test ton. Vijay is eyeing a century of his own as well and has also looked very compact out there.
AP PHOTO 78.6 overs: Ben Stokes to Cheteshwar Pujara, Back of a length ball angling into Pujara. He hops back and tries to fend it but gets it from the gloves towards point. Good stuff from the English side as they have eluded him a century before Tea. The players will take Tea now and Pujara needs to wait. 75 overs: India 220/1. Murali Pujara 83(227), Cheteshwar Pujara 94(151)
Zafar Ansari to Cheteshwar Pujara, NOT OUT! GOOD REVIEW PUJARA! Tosses it up nicely on off, Pujara prods forward and plays for the spin but is beaten by the ball skidding through. He is rapped on the back pad. There is a loud appeal for LBW and the umpire rules it out. Pujara comes down to consult with Vijay and decides to take the review. it looked pretty close to the naked eye. Time for Hawk Eye. There are two reds but the one that matters is green. The ball would have gone over the stumps. Hence, the decision is overturned. Pujara surives!
 
AP PHOTO 70.3 overs: Pujara has been given out lbw. He opts for the review. 70 overs: India 207/1. Murali Vijay 78(209), Cheteshwar Pujara 86(139). 65 overs: India 195/1. Murali Vijay 69(191), Cheteshwar Pujara 83(127) 60 overs: India 191/1. Murali Vijay 67(181), Cheteshwar Pujara 81(113) 55 overs: India 174/1. Murali Vijay 62(162), Cheteshwar Pujara 69(96) 53.2 overs: Pujara gets across and tickles it deftly down to the fine leg fence for a boundary. Nice touch play. Brings up the 100-run stand. Good batting from this pair. Welcome back for the second session. India will hope that the current partnership flourishes further as they look to accomplish their primary goal of avoiding the follow-on before thinking of bigger things. England will know that a wicket can easily bring another due to the scoreboard pressure. It shall be CHRIS WOAKES to begin proceedings after lunch. Day 3, Session 2 There weren't many demons in the track although the surface is definitely showing signs of deteriorating at some stage. England's bowlers tried hard and Broad's first ball strike was the perfect tonic they needed to begin the day. However, since then, they have been countered by some really smart batting. Only Woakes was probing in his spell while Rashid's last over before the break was brilliant too. He will bowl a lot after lunch for sure. Join us in a while for the second session. A very good session for India despite losing Gambhir off the second over of the day. Pujara and Vijay have stitched a brilliant unbroken partnership to thwart the English bowling attack. The former has been very busy out there, looking very fluent barring a spell from Woakes where he was hit on the helmet thrice. Vijay has been his usual rock solid self although he did have to survive a tough last over before lunch. 50 overs: India 162/1. Murali Vijay  57(142) Cheteshwar Pujara 62(86) 11th Test fifty for Cheteshwar Pujara!
AP PHOTO 46.1 overs: Ben Stokes to Cheteshwar Pujara, FOUR! Overpitched outside off, Pujara leans into the drive and creams it through the covers for an exquisite boundary. He has been decisive in his footwork today and reaches a well deserved fifty. 15th Test fifty for Murali Vijay.
AP PHOTO 45.4 overs: Zafar Ansari to Murali Vijay, SIX! SHOT! Great way to reach his fifty! Skips down the track to the loopy delivery and sends it sailing over long on for a maximum. It has been a solid knock. He needs to carry on! 45 overs: India 133/1. Murali Vijay 45(127), Cheteshwar Pujara 45(71)
41.6 overs: 50-run stand up for Vijay and Pujara. 40 overs: India 113/1. Murali Vijay 40(111), Cheteshwar Pujara 30(57)
35 overs: India 106/1. Murali Vijay 37(93), Cheteshwar Pujara 26(45)
31.2 overs:  Zafar Ansari to Murali Vijay, SIX! Tonked! Flighted on middle and off, Vijay steps out to that one and clobbers it way over long on for a maximum. Lovely footwork did the trick for him. He can play such shots with finesse, his record in the Indian domestic T20 league is proof of it.
  30 overs: India 95/1. Murali Vijay 28(86), Cheteshwar Pujara 24(22) 25 overs: India 73/1. Murali Vijay 25(74), Cheteshwar Pujara 5(4)
England's cricketers celebrate the wicket of Indian batsman, Gautam Gambhir (AP Photo) 24.1 overs: Stuart Broad to Gautam Gambhir, OUT! BROAD STRIKES WITH HIS FIRST BALL OF THE DAY! Messy stuff from Gambhir though and he has to go. Full ball tailing in sharply, Gautam shuffles to flick but seems to have tied his feet in a tangle as he gets stuck on the crease. The ball pings him on the front pad and that was dead plumb. Up goes the umpire's finger and Gambhir decides not to review it after a brief chat with his partner. The players and umpires are making their way out to the middle. Can the Indian openers build further and give the hosts a big platform or will the English bowlers make inroads? Let's find out. It shall be MOEEN ALI to begin proceedings on day three. It is rare that we see India on the back foot in a Test match at home. The English side have an opportunity to put the shackles on the hosts by employing aggressive field positions. While, it will be a test of character and temperament for the hosts, let's see whether they are able to steer the ship to safe harbours. Hello and a warm welcome on Day 3 of the first Test between India and England in Rajkot. The strong Indian batting would know that they have an uphill task in front of them. Though the pitch does not have any demons in it but the odd ball is playing tricks. The cracks have started to widen up. The visitors have the cushion of 3 spinners as well. DAY 3, SESSION 1