England v India: first test shot after rain ruins last day

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Joe Root (center) scored 64 and 109 in the match England 183 (Root 64; Bumrah 4-46) & 303 (Root 109, Bumrah 5-64) India 278 (Rahul 84, Robinson 5-85) & 52-1Match DrawScorecard

England captain Joe Root said time “stole us all” after the final day of the first test against India was abandoned as a draw.

Persistent rain prevented what could have been a superb finish, with all four results possible on Sunday morning at Trent Bridge.

At 52-1, chasing 209, India was the favorite, although England had an outside chance thanks to the magnificent fourth-day century of captain Joe Root.

“I would be lying if I didn’t say India was probably in the driver’s seat today,” Root said.

“I felt like we could have created nine chances of a surface like this. Things could have quickly gone in our favor.”

The wet weather delayed the scheduled departure of 11:00 BST and continued to surge throughout the day.

There was a dry spell that promised an inspection at 2:30 p.m., but the rain returned and the game was called off at 3:50 p.m.

“We were in a good position to shoot the target,” said Indian captain Virat Kohli.

“It would have been a beautiful and interesting day of cricket testing. It was unfortunate that the weather had won.”

The second test of the five-game series begins Thursday at Lord’s.

England escapes

Even though Root’s outburst gave England some hope of victory, it’s actually a loophole after being knocked out for 183 in the opening innings.

Without Root, their batter is fragile: they’ve been sacked for under 200 in eight of their last 13 completed test innings.

Matchday 4 highlights: India chases victory despite Root’s stunning 109

Most of the current top six will feel their place on the squad is vulnerable, with Zak Crawley – with just 11 on average in testing this year – looking most at risk.

“Zak is a very strong character,” Root said. “He has to keep looking to bring that to his game when he goes out there.

“He has shown everyone that he can perform at this level. Next time he comes out he will have to make sure he believes in it.”

Haseeb Hameed could be in the top three, while Ollie Pope looks set for Lord’s. There will likely only be room for two of Pope’s, Jonny Bairstow and Dan Lawrence.

“In terms of selection, we will talk about that over the next few days and we will have real clarity for the second test,” said Root.

England’s fragile stick complicates their attempt to cover up the absence of Ben Stokes, the talismanic all-rounder who has taken an indefinite break from the game to focus on his mental well-being.

Without Stokes, England played without specializing in a four-man attack.

One fix could be a callback for Moeen Ali, who could play breaks and hit in the top seven, but other spinners Jack Leach and Dom Bess were preferred when the team for the first test was chosen.

If England stick to four bowlers at Lord’s, any decision to include left arm Leach or extra pace from Mark Wood would likely come at the expense of Stuart Broad or Sam Curran.

India denied

India had the best of this game, only to be denied the opportunity to win an opener in the UK for the first time since 1986.

“I thought we had a 70-30 lead at the start of Matchday 5,” Kohli told BBC Sport.

“We were pretty happy with the way we started. We were very strong with the bat, the ball and on the pitch. We’re absolutely confident heading into the second test of the series.”

After injuries ruled out forerunners Shubman Gill and Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul looked assured for the scores of 84 and 26, answering India’s biggest question about their batting lineup.

As for their bowlers, they’re spoiled for wealth, to the point that the spellbinding off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin – with 413 try wickets – was omitted for this game.

Pace pitcher Ishant Sharma injured his hand but trained in Nottingham ahead of the game at Lord’s, where he claimed victory in India in 2014.

India were very competitive on their last tour in 2018, and a 4-1 victory margin was a score that flattered England.

Until proven otherwise, doubts will remain as to the ability of India’s batting team to withstand English conditions, but tourists will head to London as favorites to win this series.

Which team was closest to victory?

Former Indian wicket keeper Deep Dasgupta on BBC Test Match special: “It will certainly be a very frustrating day for India.

“Needing 157 and with nine wickets in hand, they had a pretty good chance of winning.”

Former England captain Michael Vaughan: “Lord’s will be a huge opportunity for the England batting team. They have to go to the Ashes with a few points in the bank.

“I think England will make two changes: Ollie Pope will replace Dan Lawrence and Haseeb Hameed will replace Zak Crawley.”

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