Team India ended Day 2 of the third Test at Lord’s on a steady note, thanks to a fighting half-century by KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant’s confident return despite a finger injury. India were 145/3 at stumps on Friday, trailing England by 242 runs.
Earlier in the day, Jasprit Bumrah delivered a sensational spell to claim his maiden five-wicket haul at Lord’s, triggering a dramatic England collapse from 251/4 to 387 all out.
India’s innings began shakily with opener Yashasvi Jaiswal falling to Jofra Archer for a duck. However, KL Rahul (53*) and Karun Nair (40) stitched a 61-run partnership to help India recover. Nair, making his Test return after eight years, looked promising before falling to Ben Stokes. Skipper Shubman Gill added 16 before edging behind to Chris Woakes.
Rishabh Pant, despite nursing a finger injury, came out swinging — hammering three boundaries off Shoaib Bashir to ease Indian nerves. Rahul went on to complete his second fifty of the series, anchoring the innings with maturity.
Earlier in England’s innings, Joe Root brought up his 37th Test hundred with a boundary on the first ball of the day, but Bumrah soon removed both Root and Stokes in quick succession. He then sent Chris Woakes back for a golden duck, ending England’s hopes of a massive first-innings total.
Jamie Smith (51) and Brydon Carse (56) resisted with a crucial lower-order stand before Siraj wrapped up the tail.