ENGLAND openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett made a strong start in their first innings of the fourth Test at Old Trafford on Thursday, before both fell short of centuries as India struck back.
At stumps on day two, England were 225-2, trailing India by 133 runs after bowling the visitors out for 358 earlier in the day. Captain Ben Stokes led the effort with the ball, taking five wickets. Rishabh Pant, batting through injury, made a fifty for India.
England lead the five-match series 2-1 and a win in Manchester would give them an unassailable lead ahead of the final Test at the Oval.
Crawley (84) and Duckett (94) put on a 166-run opening stand — their fifth century partnership in 53 Test innings together.
"We were happy to get India 358 all out," Crawley told Sky Sports. "We are happy with the state of the game right now. Batting last could be tricky."
Reflecting on his stand with Duckett, Crawley said: "I just try to stay with him and hit a few nice drives! He's the leader of that partnership and a phenomenal player."
Crawley, who has faced questions over his place in the team, played several of his trademark strokes but also survived a confident lbw appeal on 26 after not offering a shot to Mohammed Siraj.
He was eventually dismissed for 84, edging left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja to KL Rahul at slip. It was his sixth Test score of fifty or more but not a hundred in 58 matches. His 113-ball innings included 13 fours and a straight six off Jadeja.
"There is a bit more pace and carry here (Old Trafford) which suits my game," Crawley said.
Duckett also batted aggressively, hitting debutant Anshul Kamboj for three boundaries in his first over in Test cricket. Kamboj was brought into the side after Nitish Kumar Reddy was ruled out due to a knee injury sustained in England’s win at Lord’s last week.
Duckett went after Jasprit Bumrah as well, flicking him for two fours in three balls. He was on course for a second century of the series after his 149 in the first Test at Headingley, but was dismissed for 94, edging an attempted cut off Kamboj to stand-in wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel. Pant did not take the field due to injury.
Duckett faced 100 balls and struck 13 fours. His dismissal left England at 197-2.
Pant returns to bat through injury
Pant returned to bat on Thursday after suffering a foot injury. He had retired hurt on 37 on the first day after being hit on the foot while trying a reverse-sweep off a yorker from Chris Woakes.
After Shardul Thakur was dismissed for 41 by Stokes, Pant walked back out to the middle. His movement was visibly restricted, and runners are no longer permitted in international cricket.
Stokes then cleaned up the tail. He dismissed Kamboj for a duck, caught behind, to complete his first five-wicket haul in Tests since his 6-22 against the West Indies at Lord’s in 2017. He finished with figures of 5-72 in 24 overs, a notable return given recent hamstring concerns.
Pant reached his half-century in 69 balls, which included a pulled six off Jofra Archer, before being bowled by Archer for 54.
Stokes had chosen to bowl first after winning the toss — a move that had never led to a Test win at Old Trafford before. India, who have never won a Test at the venue, will need to break that record to keep their hopes of a series win alive.
(With inputs from agencies)
