Key events
âMorning Rob,â writes Guy Hornsby. âI hope no oneâs got tickets for day three. Or perhaps even day two. England have got starts but seeing that ball that got Stokes makes you wonder if this is going to be a bit of a turkey shoot. If England can get up to 200, weâre in the game. But you wonder if the sweep is the best shot on this pitch. I really hope Joe can really dig in. If any pitch needs a fifty from him, itâs this one! Iâm rubbing my rabbitâs foot.â
Lunch
That wicket means that will be the last ball of the session. The debutant Akash Deep leads India off after bowling a spectacular spell of 7-0-24-3. The scoreline looks grim but the pitch is already doing all sorts, so England are in this game. I think. The one thing I do know is that it was a blistering and breathless morning session.
WICKET! England 112-5 (Stokes LBW b Jadeja 3)
Ben Stokes walks on an LBW. It was a vile grubber from Jadeja, and the moment he went back it became unplayable.
Stokes smiles wryly as he walks off the field, though the captain in him will be perversely encouraged that a ball has misbehaved that much before lunch on the first day.
24th over: England 112-4 (Root 16, Stokes 3) Root plays out five dot balls from Ashwin. He has 16 from 41 balls and has evidently decided to bat time, even on such a capricious pitch.
âIn answer to your question about why there is so much hostility towards England and Bazball, besides the many crusties who hate fun itâs surely that schadenfreude is so difficult to resist,â writes Will Vignoles. âIâm a Bazball apologist but conversely have greatly enjoyed watching India find new and increasingly humiliating ways to fail to win ICC tournaments for example. Iâm not proud of it but there we are!â
Itâs the level of hostility from England fans that befuddles me.
23rd over: England 111-4 (Root 16, Stokes 2) Itâs not even lunch on the first day.
Root is not out! It was bat first, just, so Root survives. Kumar Dharmasena strikes again: heâs been in sensational form in this series.
India review for LBW agianst Root! I reckon this is out. He squeezed it but if it was pad first â and I suspect it was â Root is in abundant bother.
22nd over: England 110-4 (Root 16, Stokes 1) On TNT Sports, Alastair Cook estimates this is a â250 wicketâ, so Bairstowâs innings could be vital. But heâll be thoroughly hacked off that he didnât make his first fifty of the series.
âClearly no-one told Akash Deep that his job was to give England much needed relief from Bumrahâs menace,â writes Brian Withington. âWonderful opening spell.â
I suppose itâs fair enough that a man called Deep should highlight the depth of Indian cricket. With everyone fit, this could be their 2nd XI, and Iâm almost certainly missing somebody: Shaw, Sudharsan, Patidar, Iyer, Sarfaraz, Pandya, Jurel, Axar, Kuldeep, Deep, Siraj.
WICKET! England 109-4 (Bairstow LBW b Ashwin 38)
Yep, it pitched in line and the rest was a formality. Bairstow goes after a bristling cameo of 38 from 35 balls, and Ravichandran Ashwin has his 502nd Test wicket. Iâm not sure the sweep is the best shot on this pitch, and itâs a real shame because Bairstow was playing excellently.
India review for LBW against Bairstow! This is close. He missed a sweep at Ashwin, bowling round the wicket. If it pitched on, and I reckon it did, heâs in trouble.
21st over: England 105-3 (Root 16, Bairstow 34) Jadeja beats both batters with terrific deliveries. I thought Bairstow had been dropped by Jurel â the reaction suggested as much â but there was nothing on UltraEdge.
Root lands a counter-punch to end the over, cutting for four with excellent placement. This is exhilarating stuff.
20th over: England 100-3 (Root 12, Bairstow 33) The new bowler Ravichandran Ashwin is blasted over midwicket for six by Bairstow, who is looking dangerous and has raced to 33 from 31 balls. You can usually gauge Bairstowâs mood and intent by the ferocity with which he chews his gum after hitting a boundary; he was chomping like a beauty after that shot.
19th over: England 89-3 (Root 11, Bairstow 23) Root moves into double figures with a deft steer for four off Jadedja. England are scoring at 4.68 per over, which takes a deal of courage after the week theyâve had on and off the field.
18th over: England 83-3 (Root 6, Bairstow 22) Heeeeeeeeeeeeereâs Jonny. He rushes into the twenties with successive boundaries off Siraj, a smear down the ground that Inspector Gadget would have struggled to catch and a brusque, beautifully placed drive between extra cover and mid-off. Heâs in the mood.
Meanwhile, this is how to start a Test career.
17th over: England 71-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 11) Root is beaten by another menacing delivery from Jadeja. It turned and also kept a bit low, which the Indian commentators think will be a problem as the match progresses, especially for players who sweep.
âWatching that Root LBW appeal first ball,â says Saurya Chakraborty. âI had a thought – what do you reckon Scyld Berry would have written if he was out LBW first ball trying a reverse scoop? I do wonder if Bazball inspires journos to go as hard as the batters doâ¦
âBy the way, I have been searching for a headline which puns on this, but the Hindi word baazi means âgambleâ, and so baazi-ball would be a perfect Hinglish term for Bazball.â
Bhajji-ball was great fun in 2001 as well. As for Scyld, I didnât agree with his assessment but if anyone is qualified to make a statement like that, itâs him.
16th over: England 71-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 11) Siraj replaces Deep, who bowled a majestic spell of 7-0-24-3. His length was perfect, just full of good, and he moved the ball sharply back into the right-handers.
Bairstow gets his first boundary, opening the face to slash Siraj well wide of gully. A couple of inside-edges betray his modest recent form.
15th over: England 67-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 7) Oof. Jadeja beats Bairstow with his first jaffa of the day, darted in fron round the wicket before spitting away. Bairstowâs body language suggests a man who wants a piece of Gilbert Jessop, or at least a 35-ball 55, but itâs easier said than done.
âWow,â says Andrew Crossley. â(Sorry Iâve nothing more interesting than that to say, but itâs an electric debut).â
There have been loads of great bowling debuts, for example Dominic Cork in 1995, but I canât think of too many first spells to compare with this, particularly with the new ball. From memory Richard Johnson started his Test career with a spell of 8-3-18-5 at Durham in 2003, but that was against a weakened Zimbabwe.
14th over: England 64-3 (Root 5, Bairstow 4)
13th over: England 60-3 (Root 4, Bairstow 1) A quiet over from Jadeja, who at the moment is the supporting act for a debutant. By the way Root has started quite encouragingly.
12th over: England 57-3 (Root 2, Bairstow 0) Deep bowls the last ball of his sixth over after the drinks break. Bairstow, on the walk, defends.
The depth in Indian cricket is terrifying. We havenât seen the like since 1994-95, when Australia A had a top six of Hayden, Blewett, Martyn, Bevan, Langer and Ponting. Australia A.
Drinks
Crawley has a word with Jonny Bairstow as he walks off the field, presumably telling him to give it some humpty. Crawley made a run-a-ball 42 that was scratchy at times, dominant at others. Those runs feel more valuable with every passing wicket over.
WICKET! England 57-3 (Crawley b Deep 42)
Crawley whips a no-ball from Deep handsomely over midwicket for four. A Crawley cameo on a dodgy pitch? Weâve been here before.
But we havenât seen many new-ball spells like this from a debutant! Deep has taken his third wicket, bowling Crawley with a jaffa that goes through the gate and trims the bails. Crawley was cut in half and ended up on his haunches.
There are some nervous looks, just in case itâs another no-ball, but Rod Tucker soon gives him the good news. This is magnificent stuff!
11th over: England 50-2 (Crawley 37, Root 1) âThe quote about courage that opened your preamble (03.18 GMT) calls to mind another, from Norman Mailerâs novel Cannibals and Christians,â says Darryl Accone. âItâs about the character Scrantonâs bid for president:
One felt he had been spoiled when he was young by a lack of testing. It was not that he lacked bravery, it was that he had lacked all opportunity to be brave for much too long and now he was not so much engaged in a serious political struggle as in a puberty rite.
âThis might be an analogy for English cricket pre-Bazball and now. Not given the chance to be courageous by Cook and Root among others, now emboldened to be swashbuckling but with some unfortunate side-effects. The shortcomings of Bazball on the field matter less than the immature bunker mentality off it, which can give the whole a pubescent air.â
I take the point, and I agree theyâve said a few silly things, but I find the level of hostility astonishing. All the ills in the world right now and weâre nailing people for giddy overexuberance?
10th over: England 47-2 (Crawley 35, Root 0) As debut new-balls spells go, Akash Deepâs has been a gem: 5-0-13-2. He also cleaned up Zak Crawley with a no-ball.
Root is not out!
Yep, he was outside the line, just about. Sheesh.
In fact, this is really close… it was definitely pad first.
India review for LBW against Root!
Root survives a huge LBW first ball after pushing nervously at an inswinger from the rampant Akash Deep. I think itâs outside the line, and there may have been an inside-edge â but Rohit reviews!
WICKET! England 47-2 (Pope LBW b Deep 0)
Heâs out! Rightly or wrongly, I suspect England will be unhappy about that decision. Pope was on the walk and hit high on the pad â but the bounce has been uneven so far and I guess that one kept a bit low. The replay suggested it was hitting the leg bail. It was a brilliant review from India and Pope has gone for a second-ball duck.
Pope whipped across another excellent nipbacker from Deep. I reckon height will save him but itâs closeâ¦
India review for LBW against Pope! This is getting a bit too chaotic for Englandâs liking.
WICKET! England 47-1 (Duckett c Jurel b Deep 11)
This time itâs for real: Akash Deep has his first Test wicket! Duckett pushes tentatively at a fine delivery and thin-edges through to Jurel. Deep beats his chest with delight; he has bowled beautifully.
Duckett could have left it, but a) itâs Duckett and b) it moved late from a full length. It was a really good piece of bowling.
9th over: England 46-0 (Crawley 34, Duckett 11) Duckett cracks the last ball of the over through the covers for his first boundary. There was enough in that over to suggest Jadeja will be a handful today, never mind on day three. In that context, this is a really good start from England.
REVIEW! England 42-0 (Duckett not out 7)
Ravindra Jadeja almost strikes fifth ball. Duckett tried to sweep a ball from round the wicket, missed and was hit high on the back pad. India reviewed Kumar Dharmasenaâs decision but there were two umpireâs calls so the original decision stands.
8th over: England 39-0 (Crawley 32, Duckett 6) Even Sunil Gavaskar, as classical an opener as weâve seen, is high on life in the commentary box as he talks about Englandâs approach.
Duckett has been slightly starved of the strike, which has happened a few times in this series, but he has actually looked more comfortable than Crawley. He has also started quite slowly by his standards: he takes two from Deepâs over, which moves him to 6 from 17 balls. And now itâs time for trial by spin.
âThis could be a fascinating contest, especially with England winning the toss on a sporting track, and India missing Bumrah the Magnificent,â says Brian Withington. âAll results possible (other than a high-scoring bore draw?). Whatâs not to like?â
A 2am alarm call, but thatâs about it. This series has been so much fun.
7th over: England 37-0 (Crawley 32, Duckett 4) We neednât read too much into Crawleyâs scratchy start; he struggled even more in the first hour of his astonishing 189 at Old Trafford last summer. (He also looked nervous as hell when he made all those single-figures scores in 2021, so nobody knows anything.)
Crawley has clearly decided to hit his way out of bother. After inside-edging Siraj through the vacant short leg region, he belts 18 off the next four balls! He hit three successive fours â straight drive, flick through midwicket, clip through square leg â and then ended the over with a disdainful clout over wide mid-on for six. Crawley, who has played a dog of an innings in so many ways, is 32 not out from 32 balls. He has the courage not to become ordinary.
6th over: England 18-0 (Crawley 14, Duckett 3) Deep beats Crawley twice more outside off stump, then finds an entirely genuine edge that flies wide of the cordon for four. If Deep had played 100 Tests this would be a seriously good new-ball spell. For a debutant itâs almost offensively good.
First Test wicket scrubbed off for a no ball used to be an English disease – recent examples inc Ben Stokes, Mark Wood, Mason Crane, Tom Curran, Saqib Mahmood
— Ali Martin (@Cricket_Ali) February 23, 2024
5th over: England 14-0 (Crawley 10, Duckett 3) Siraj has a big LBW appeal against Crawley turned down; too high. That seems to trigger a the-hell-with-this response in Crawley, who clumps the next ball down the ground.
Heâs still struggling, but that was a decent shot. Duckett, by contrast, has been a) almost strokeless and b) immaculate in defence. It would be a glorious piece of trolling if he scores a 247-ball 41 today, with no leaves.
4th over: England 9-0 (Crawley 5, Duckett 3) Look, it wonât take long for Deep to take his first Test wicket. He has started superbly, with no sign of nerves, and is moving the ball both ways from a length. Crawley is really struggling to deal with his nipbackers.
NO BALL! Crawley is not out!
Akash Deep is denied a first Test wicket. It was a storming delivery, which growled off the seam to beat Crawley on the inside and send the off stump flying. But Crawley was told to wait around and Deep soon heard the siren of doom.
WICKET! England 7-1 (Crawley b Deep 4)
Zak Crawley is put out of his misery by a spectacular delivery from Akash Deep!
3rd over: England 5-0 (Crawley 3, Duckett 2) Thereâs a deep point in place for Duckett, another moral victory for England, who thus gets only a single when he scythes Siraj square on the off side.
Sirajâs second over is another good one, with Crawley inside-edging a nipbacker for a single off the last ball. He looks a bit nervous.
2nd over: England 2-0 (Crawley 1, Duckett 1) Akash Deep is a relatively late bloomer: heâs 27 and only made his first-class debut in 2019. Thereâs a nice piece on Cricinfo that tells his backstory.
He starts with two slips and a gully for Duckett, immediately hitting a fullish length at around 85mph. The third ball strays down the leg side and is brilliantly stopped by the diving Jurel. Moments like that can be important in a low-scoring game.
Duckett and Crawley take a single apiece, then Duckett is beaten by a jaffa that snaps off the seam. This mysterious pitch is a test of Englandâs attacking intent, especially as they are batting first and have no frame of reference. They might need to sit in for a bit.
1st over: England 0-0 (Crawley 0, Duckett 0) Sirajâs first over is mildly terrifying, especially for those who were hoping to watch some cricket on Monday. Crawley is beaten twice outside off stump and rapped on the glove by a vicious lifter. One ball went through a bit low; two or three kicked from a length. Yeah, this is an interesting pitch.
Right, here we go. Mohammad Siraj, who outbowled Bumrah at Ranchi, will start to Zak Crawley. It wonât be a quiet start.
Just over ten minutes until the start of play. Iâm off to grab a coffee but will be back in time to watch the first ball hit a crack and fly over Zak Crawleyâs head for five wides.
Turn! Turn! Turn!
This is Graeme Swannâs verdict on the Ranchi pitch.
Iâve not seen a pitch like this in a long time. My fingers are twitching: it looks like a dried-up riverbed. There are a lot of cracks and they are very, very dry; if the ball hits those cracks it could explode. It should turn early in the game.
Deep Dasgupta, the former Indian wicetkeeper, thinks it could be hard to score square of the wicket but that it will âplay much better than it looksâ.
Team news
Akash Deep for Jasprit Bumrah is indeed the only change to the Indian XI.
India Jaiswal, Rohit (c), Gill, Patidar, Sarfaraz, Jadeja, Jurel (wk), Ashwin, Deep, Kuldeep, Siraj.
England Crawley, Duckett, Pope, Root, Bairstow, Stokes (c), Foakes (wk), Hartley, Robinson, Bashir, Anderson.
Rehan Ahmed leaves India tour
Itâs just been announced that Rehan Ahmed is flying home today because of an urgent family matter. Ali Martin, our man in Ranchi, says he received the news after the team was announced yesterday, so it didnât influence Englandâs selection.
Rehan wonât be returning for the fifth Test, which means Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir are the only specialist spinners left in the squad. I wonder what it would take for them to hit their knees in front of Liam Dawson.
England win the toss and bat
Itâs on! (Okay, it might not be on, but England really, really needed to win the toss.)
âThe first hour should give us an indication what the pitch will be like,â says Ben Stokes.
âYeah we would have batted first,â says Rohit Sharma with magnificent languor. âThe pitch looks a little dry, with a few cracks, but thatâs the nature of the pitch here. Weâve gotta play well to win the game, like we have in the last two games.â#
Interesting⦠very interesting
England have announced their team early, as is their wont. Ollie Robinson and Shoaib Bashir come in for Mark Wood and Rehan Ahmed.
Indiaâs XI hasnât been announced but we know that Akash Deep, the right-arm swing bowler who impressed enormously against England Lions, will make his debut in replace of the rested Jasprit Bumrah. Thatâs likely to be the only change from Rajkot.
Preamble
I have most admired him, because he had the courage and the ability not to become ordinary.
Des Hoareâs quote about the former Australian captain Kim Hughes, taken from Christian Ryanâs glorious book Golden Boy, can be applied to â or at least adapted for â Ben Stokesâ England side. They donât have the ability of a great team, which makes their courage even more admirable and their achievements even more life-affirming.
The backlash after England were hammered in Rajkot â parts of which were disproportionate, entitled, juvenile, ignorant and miserably lacking in both empathy and respect for an awesome Indian performance â will probably make them go even harder in the fourth Test in Ranchi. Theyâll mess up at times, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming, and thereâs every chance theyâll lose the series 4-1. So what: theyâre playing away to India, the toughest challenge in Test cricket since going to the Caribbean to the West Indies in the 1980s, with a virgin spin attack and a malfunctioning middle order. The miracle is that it took until the middle day of the series for Indiaâs superiority to become apparent.
Even now, when all logic says the series has taken a decisive turn, the hopeful voice, the one that thinks England can take this to a decider in Dharamshala, is still being given an audience. Thatâs purely because of all the extraordinary things they have done under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.
In a world full of uniform individuality, we should cherish every chance we get to watch a team of true originals. Trust me: weâll never have it this good again, and whatever happens in the next two and a half five days wonât change that.
Right, thatâs enough 3am sermonising. Letâs get on with the game.