Chennai: A 152-run opening partnership between KL Rahul and Parthiv Patel led India’s response to England’s 477 in excellent batting conditions at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Both batsmen scored freely – at a run rate of 3.63 overall, and at 4.21 on the third morning – and looked in no trouble until Parthiv, having entered the 70s for the first time in his Test career, fell in a moment of overconfidence.
Having stepped out and whipped Moeen Ali over wide mid-on the previous ball, Parthiv left his crease again. This time, though, the ball drifted in a touch further, making him aim squarer over the leg side. It also turned more than the previous ball, and looped to the fielder at cover off the leading edge. It was England’s only success in the session, as India went to lunch 173 for 1, with Rahul batting on 89 and Cheteshwar Pujara on 11.
India – or Rahul, at any rate – came out looking to take the attack to England’s spinners. In only the third over of the morning, he stepped out to Liam Dawson and launched him for a straight six. In his next over, when the left-arm spinner dropped long-off back, he came down the track again, moving across towards the off side as well, in order to hit him against the turn, over wide long-on. Six more.
Having bowled only four overs, Dawson went out of the attack. There was little help available to the seamers, and both batsmen enjoyed themselves, Parthiv picking up fours through mid-on and midwicket off Stuart Broad with drives that showed the full face of his bat, and Rahul flaying Jake Ball through cover point.
Moeen took over from Broad, and found Parthiv’s edge in his first over with one that bounced a little more than the batsman expected, but the ball quickly ran past slip. Rahul, again, showed his intentions early against the offspinner, sweeping him powerfully from outside off to the midwicket boundary in his second over. Not long after, either side of Parthiv’s dismissal, he exploited the vacant point region with stinging reverse-sweeps.
By then, Adil Rashid was beginning to find some purchase, reward for slowing down his pace a little, and had twice gone past Rahul’s outside edge. That, and the arrival of a new batsman, prompted Alastair Cook to bring his field up for his legspinner. Promptly, Pujara stepped out, took one on the full, and whipped it to the midwicket boundary. Three balls later, Rashid dropped short, and Pujara pulled him for another four.
