NEW DELHI: India’s chase of 193 for victory took a dramatic turn late on Day 4 at Lord’s as England captain Ben Stokes dismissed nightwatchman Akash Deep off the final ball of the day, leaving the visitors wobbling at 58/4 – still needing 135 runs to win with six wickets in hand.Score: India vs England 3rd TestIndia’s innings began on the back foot after Jofra Archer removed Yashasvi Jaiswal for a seven-ball duck in just the second over. The early breakthrough brought Karun Nair to the crease to join KL Rahul, and the pair cautiously rebuilt under rising pressure.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Nair and Rahul added 36 for the second wicket before Brydon Carse injected life into England’s fightback with two big wickets in back-to-back overs. First, he trapped Nair LBW for 14, ending a 33-ball stay. Then he produced a near-perfect delivery to dismiss India captain Shubman Gill, also LBW, for just 6.
Rahul, India’s first-innings centurion, remained unbeaten on 33 off 47 balls, holding the innings together with a composed knock that included six boundaries.
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However, the day belonged to Stokes in the end, as the England skipper struck with the final delivery — castling Akash Deep to put the hosts firmly back in the contest.Earlier, Washington Sundar produced a superb spell of off-spin to claim 4/22 and dismantle England’s middle and lower order. After England had recovered to 154/4 through a 67-run stand between Joe Root (40) and Stokes (33), Sundar dismissed both set batters within 20 runs of each other.Root was bowled behind his legs while attempting a sweep, and Stokes fell attempting an ugly slog that shattered his stumps — prompting a frustrated reaction from the captain. Jamie Smith and Shoaib Bashir also fell to Sundar, while Jasprit Bumrah chipped in with two late wickets, including a searing yorker to dismiss Brydon Carse and a peach to knock over Chris Woakes.England’s second innings folded for 192, setting India 193 to win the Test and take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.The tense closing stages of Day 4, capped by Stokes’ late strike, have now left the Test hanging on a knife’s edge, setting up a blockbuster Day 5 at the Home of Cricket.
