It finally happened. India’s Test skipper Virat Kohli finally departed for a under-40 score in this series, when he attempted a loose drive to Stuart Broad and hit it straight to Keaton Jennings for just 15.
It was the highlight of a good session for England after they had looked listless before lunch. Ben Stokes got the vital breakthrough of Cheteshwar Pujara for 16 and Stuart Broad followed it up with the hugely-important wicket of Virat Kohli. Both the dismissal came out of patience; England’s bowlers kept on keeping the ball wide outside off-stump and eventually both succumbed, Pujara nicking to slip and Kohli playing away from his body.
In between, KL Rahul went to his fourth Test century to cap a great knock, studded with some breathtaking shots. England’s ambit at trying to frustrate him out did not work on Rahul. He quietened down after getting to his century but unlike his senior partners, did not play a loose shot, providing a gritty streak in him that many not have seen till now.
Karun Nair, who has not had the best series as yet, looked composed to bat out the rest of a session where England’s bowlers looked sharper and got considerably more bite from a tired Chennai surface. They still have a lot of work to do.
Brief scores:
India 256/3 (KL Rahul 133 not out, Parthiv Patel 71; Ben Stokes 1/25, Stuart Broad 1/33) trail England 477 by 221 runs
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