TeaIndia 62 for 1(Vijay 31*, Pujara 7*, Moeen 1 for 22) trail England 400 (Jennings 112, Buttler 76, Moeen 50, Ashwin 6-112, Jadeja 4-109) by 338 runs
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After putting up a first-innings total of 400, and supplementing that with the wicket of KL Rahul before tea on the second day, England were having fun at Wankhede stadium again. Their total, in fact, was exactly the same as that in 2006. A left-handed, South African-born opening batsman had made a century then too, and set up a famous victory. India, trailing by 338 runs, have a task on their hands to prevent this Test from reaching a similar conclusion.
Scoreboard pressure is a living thing in India. It breathes down the neck of opposition batsmen and lifts the bowler’s spirits even when there is nothing in the pitch. The one in Mumbai, though, offered plenty of turn and bounce to the spinners so England’s total looked excellent. The question, though, was if Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid had the quality and the consistency required to win Test matches.
At first, that did not seem the case. They tended to push the ball through quickly, which works well on slow pitches, but was unnecessary here. Then, in the 14th over, Moeen looped one up for the cover drive. A little bit before that, Alastair Cook pulled the fielder out of that region. Rahul couldn’t resist the temptation. He went for the shot, the ball dipped on him, burst through the gap between bat and pad and bowled him.
Moments like those would likely happen often in this Test for the surface has pace. The spinners willing to be slow through the air and give the ball enough flight can expect wickets. But England have only two of them in their ranks and India would still back themselves to upset them. M Vijay did so when he tonked Rashid for a four and a six in the third over after England had made the breakthrough and Cheteshwar Pujara was dancing down the track for his second ball.
More to follow
Alagappan Muthu is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo