The West Indies are on the brink of a quick defeat at stumps on day two of the first of three Tests against England at Lord’s.

The tourists ended Thursday 79-6 off 34.5 overs, needing a further 171 runs to force England to bat again.

Similar to the first innings, the West Indian top order failed to impress as Kraigg Brathwaite (4), Kirk McKenzie (0), Mikyle Louis (14) and Kavem Hodge (4) all fell within the first 20 overs of the innings with the West Indies teetering at just 37.

Alick Athanaze was next to go after battling hard for 22 to leave the West Indies 55-5 in the 29^th over before Jason Holder and Joshua Da Silva looked set to see out the English bowling for the rest of the day.

This proved not to be the case as Holder became Gus Atkinson’s ninth wicket of his magical debut in the day’s last over for 20 to leave the West Indies 79-6 off 34.5 overs at stumps.

Joshua Da Silva was 8* at the close of play.

James Anderson, Atkinson and skipper Ben Stokes have taken two wickets, each, so far.

Earlier, the hosts progressed to 371 all out off 90 overs after beginning day two 189-3.

Both overnight batsmen, Joe Root and Harry Brook, went on to bring up their fifties.

Root eventually fell for a 114-ball 68 including seven fours while Brook made an even 50 off 64 balls including five fours and a six.

The top scorer on the day, however, was debutant Jamie Smith who hit eight fours and two sixes on his way to a 119-ball 70.

On his return to the Test arena, Jayden Seales was the pick of the West Indian bowlers with 4-77 from 20 overs.

Gudakesh Motie and Jason Holder provided good support for Seales with 2-41 off 16 overs and 2-58 off 18 overs, respectively.

Full Scores:

West Indies 121 all out off 41.4 overs (Mikyle Louis 27, Gus Atkinson 7-45) & 79-6 off 34.5 overs (Alick Athanaze 22, James Anderson 2-11, Ben Stokes 2-25, Gus Atkinson 2-27)

England 371 all out off 90 overs (Zak Crawley 76, Jamie Smith 70, Joe Root 68, Ollie Pope 57, Harry Brook 50, Jayden Seales 4-77, Gudakesh Motie 2-41, Jason Holder 2-58)

The chances of West Indies bettering England in their three-match Test series were always slim, and Wednesday’s opening day of the first encounter at Lord’s again justified why the host are overwhelmingly favoured.

No doubt the Caribbean side went into the contest confident that they can secure a Test series win in England for the first time since 1988, but their batting display was a far cry from a team hoping to achieve that feat.

They collapsed from 88-3 to 121 all out, as England’s attack, led by debutant Gus Atkinson, was quick, vicious and left West Indies in a tailspin with no response to the onslaught.

Debutant Mikyle Louis (27), Alick Athanaze (23), Kavem Hodge (24), Alzarri Joseph (17), and Gudakesh Motie, with an unbeaten 14, were the only scores in double figures. Atkinson bagged 7-45, the second best by an England bowler on Test debut behind Dominic Cork.

England in response were 189-3 at close, as they opened up a 68-run lead courtesy of half-centuries from Zak Crawley (76) and Ollie Pope (57). Joe Root, on 15, and Harry Brook, on 25, will resume batting on Thursday’s second day.

Scores: West Indies 121 all out (41.4 overs); England 189-3 (40 overs)

Gus Atkinson bask in the admiration of his teammates.

West Indies assistant coach Jimmy Adams narrowed their opening day performance to England’s quality bowling and inexperience batting from his team.

“I think it was fairly bowling friendly conditions, and added to that England exploited the conditions really well. They had quality swing and they didn’t give us much freedom, and maybe a little bit of experience on our part as well. So I think a combination of those issues,” Adams said in a post-day conference.

Despite their current position, Adams remains optimistic his men can get back into the contest, provided they apply themselves accordingly.

“All of England’s bowlers are world class, so we can try (to comeback), but it is going to be difficult. But this is what Test cricket is all about, you have a bad day, you think about it, roll your sleeves up and come back on day two and try and work your way back into the match. We have seven wickets to get first of all and then hopefully we can bat for a day or two and see where we go from there,” he added.

After losing their top order in the opening session with just 44 runs on the board, Hodge and Athanaze attempted to rebuild the West Indies inning from 61-3 at lunch, but having already inflicted the wound, Atkinson duly obliged and finished what he started.

Louis, the first player to represent West Indies from St Kitts and Nevis, showed promise in a 34-run opening stand with captain Kraigg Brathwaite. Both seemed set for a positive knock before Brathwaite (six) dragged a wide delivery from Atkinson onto the stumps, while Jamaican Kirk McKenzie lasted only 14 deliveries, as he too was sent back by Atkinson for a solitary run.

Mikyle Louis receives his cap from West Indies legend Sir Viv Richards.

Louis then followed, as he edged one from England’s captain Ben Stokes, which Harry Brook collected low down at third slip.

When Athanaze edged to Joe Root, it sparked a typical West Indies collapse, as Jason Holder and Joshua da Silva came and went without scoring, while Hodge served up a catch off Chris Woakes to Ollie Pope, who took it in dazzling fashion.

Alzarri Joseph attempted a counter as he slashed four boundaries in a nine-ball cameo, before he became Atkinson’s sixth victim, and Shamar Joseph (zero), the seamer’s seventh. Motie then contributed 14 runs to push the visitors past the 120-run mark, as James Anderson, playing in his final Test series, accounted for Jayden Seales.

England in their turn at bat, lost Ben Duckett (three), who knicked a Jayden Seales delivery to da Silva. However, Crawley, who rode his luck, and Pope quickly steadied things as both scored at a decent tempo, before the latter was trapped in front by Holder.

Crawley’s luck ran out soon after and he was removed by an inswinging yorker from Seales, as West Indies briefly harboured hopes of clawing their way back into the contest, but Root and Brook kept them at bay for the remainder of the day.

Seales has 2-31 so far.

Alec Stewart is braced for the “toughest” season yet, but has still set Surrey the target of winning a third consecutive Vitality County Championship title.

It was confirmed last month that Stewart would leave his director of cricket role at the end of 2024 in order to spend more time with his family following 11 years in the post.

Stewart signed his first contract with the county in 1981 and has been involved in six Championship successes, but he is striving for one more.

While there have been multiple back-to-back Division One winners in recent seasons, Brian Close’s Yorkshire side from the 1960s are the last team to win three Championships in a row.

Chelsea-fan Stewart is well aware of how difficult that will be, especially with a T20 World Cup in June, but has challenged Surrey to go up a level in the longest format and to fulfil their potential in white-ball cricket with an overdue Vitality Blast win.

“It’ll be the hardest year because of the World Cup,” Stewart reflected.

“We’ll have players who will go from the IPL (Indian Premier League), straight into the World Cup or near enough.

“This season is the toughest because it’s an extra month or six weeks that we won’t have those players for, but we’ve known that, so therefore you try and plan for that.

“I’m greedy, I want to win everything. We won it (Vitality Blast) in 2003, the first year, and we’ve got to Finals Day since but we haven’t won it.

“So, of course I’d like to win it, but so would 17 other counties.

“The Championship is still, for me, the pinnacle. The fact we’ve won it two in two is fantastic. Can we do it three in three? That’s what we’re going for.

“And then it’s how do we play, because the champions are always the side to beat and have we got the skillsets? And can we up our game enough?

“We were good last year, but I didn’t think we were great last year.”

Surrey players are determined to give Stewart a fitting farewell, but even the former England captain knows it will not really be goodbye.

The Kia Oval has largely been Stewart’s home for the best part of five decades and even longer for the family given his father Micky made his debut for the county in 1954.

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Stewart acknowledged: “It’s never going to end. Formally, yes, but I’ll still be coming to this place or still feel a part of it.

“They want me to try and stay in some role but I’ve said, I’m never going to walk away completely, but they’ve got to get the person in place first, because that person may not want me hanging about, which I fully understand.

“So, yep, I’m stepping down from a role I have thoroughly enjoyed and continue to enjoy. And then in December or whenever it will be, then I’ll drive out and say goodbye.

“Whatever job you’re in, you want to leave it in a better shape than when you took it over. That’s for others to judge, but we’ve certainly made progress.

“I want to win every trophy, but I get as much enjoyment seeing a (Ollie) Pope, (Will) Jacks or (Jamie) Smith come through our system as youngsters, come into our first team and then going to play for England because that to me counts as success.

“The trophy cabinet has the Championship in it at the minute, but if you have another cabinet, it’d be full of Surrey players that have come through the pathway then got England caps.”

Ben Foakes will not lose sleep over whether he features in England’s Test plans for this summer.

The Surrey wicketkeeper was back in the England XI for the winter tour of India and once again impressed with his skills behind the stumps, but failed to register a fifty in 10 innings during the 4-1 loss.

Foakes has been in and out of the team since his 2018 Test debut and missed last year’s Ashes after Jonny Bairstow was given keeping duties.

The wicketkeeper berth is seemingly up for grabs ahead of home series with the West Indies and Sri Lanka this summer, but Foakes, who scored 205 runs at an average of 20.5 in India, is relaxed about his position.

“I haven’t been told anything,” Foakes said.

“Obviously the more years I’ve got into my career, the more I’ve been in and out, I’ve almost come to an acceptance that it has been the case and not try to worry about it or stress too much about getting a long run or external stuff.

“India, first and foremost, I took as just trying to really enjoy it. I think the more times you get dropped, the more times you realise you don’t know how long you’ve got left or whatever it might be.

“So while you’re out there, rather than stress too much about the game or this might be my last chance, just enjoy the fact you are playing and you don’t know how long for essentially.”

The series started with a high for Foakes, who shared a crucial 112-run partnership with Ollie Pope in England’s remarkable first Test win in Hyderabad.

A number of other starts with the bat were made by the 31-year-old, but he often batted with the tail and expressed his disappointment after failing to “kick on” during his 47 in Ranchi.

Foakes added: “I felt like I kept pretty well, keeping felt good. To start off, I didn’t feel amazing with the bat and then, yeah, disappointed in a couple of innings that I didn’t kick on.

“Again, that role of batting lower down, batting with the tail, the more I do it, the more I look at it as how many times can I impact?

“Because some series you might not get an opportunity to go big, big for example, so it is very crucial when you do get a chance to try and really kick on, which I was disappointed in the fourth Test where I could have kicked on and didn’t.

“(I’m) still evolving and trying to learn with the tail and how to manage those sort of situations.”

While Foakes bats at seven for England, he has gained the majority of his success for Surrey as one of their top-five batters, which has contributed towards a first-class average of 38.52.

Foakes will aim to be back in the runs next week when Surrey begin their Vitality County Championship title defence with a trip to Lancashire, but he acknowledged the uncertainty over his England place provides one dilemma.

“Every summer in the past, I’ve not known whether I will play so I’ve played every (Surrey) game,” Foakes said.

“I did look at the Test schedule and there would be the chance to play 28 Tests and Champo (games) if I did play from the start of India until the end of New Zealand, obviously depending on selection.

“If that was the case and I did play, that is quite a lot of cricket so there would be potential to have a rest, but again it depends on what they’re looking at. Whether I am likely to play or not and then reassess.”

England batter Ollie Pope is “itching” to play again after reflecting on the mistakes he made during a frustrating tour of India as an individual and a team.

Pope starred in a remarkable first Test win in Hyderabad with a sparkling 196, but failed to go beyond 39 in his next eight innings and was out for a pair in Ranchi.

It was a similar story for a number of his team-mates with India able to win the final four Tests comprehensively to inflict the first series defeat of the Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum reign.

The series marked Pope’s return to action after he dislocated his right shoulder during the Ashes last summer.

While the 26-year-old spent most of the winter on the road, he was back training for Surrey on Monday and is eyeing plenty of Vitality County Championship runs before the home Test series with West Indies in July.

“Straight back into it – our choice. I feel pretty fresh,” Pope said at a sponsors event for Swiss watch brand Rado, the England and Wales Cricket Board’s official timing partner.

“Obviously I had that seven months out and leaving that India tour, if I had scored another three 70s or something, I might be feeling slightly differently but I almost feel frustrated.

“I feel like I’m in really good nick without putting together those scores, so hopefully I can go and find that rhythm of putting together big scores… at three, unless Stewie (Alec Stewart, Surrey director of cricket) drops me!

“I might miss one in that first seven or eight games, but yes, I’m itching to get back and just scoring runs and representing Surrey.”

England are battling to avoid a three-day defeat in Dharamsala as Ravichandran Ashwin caused havoc among the top-order after James Anderson became the first fast bowler to record 700 Test wickets.

Anderson joined former Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan and the late Australia leg-break bowler Shane Warne in the 700 club by dismissing Kuldeep Yadav on the third morning of the fifth Test.

India were all out for 477 and a lead of 259 before Ashwin ran amok on his 100th Test, bagging both England openers, Ollie Pope and Ben Stokes as the tourists ended the session on 103 for five.

Jonny Bairstow briefly rallied on his 100th Test with three big sixes off Ashwin but there was to be no memorable end to the series for the Yorkshireman as he was dismissed before lunch for 39 off 31 balls.

A 4-1 series defeat now appears all but inevitable and England’s hopes of not losing by an innings rest on Joe Root, who is on 34 not out after Stokes was castled by Ashwin with the last ball of the session.

After a chastening past couple of days, England broke out in smiles when Anderson kissed the outside edge of Kuldeep on the way through to Ben Foakes for 30. The evergreen 41-year-old soaked in the congratulations of his team-mates before raising the ball in a typically low-key celebration.

Shoaib Bashir had his five-for as India added just four runs to their overnight score, with the young off-spinner bagging Jasprit Bumrah for 20 to finish with five for 173. Anderson and Bashir each deferred to the other to lead England off the field before walking off together.

It was not long before England were in trouble when their innings started, Ashwin making the breakthrough in his first over when Ben Duckett uncharacteristically charged down the wicket and toe-ended the ball on to his off stump.

Zak Crawley made a 16-ball duck, dismissed after turning Ashwin to backward short-leg while Pope was sketchy again, making 19 before premeditating a sweep which ballooned off the top edge to Yashasvi Jaiswal.

Bairstow was purposeful and muscled three sixes in the space of seven Ashwin deliveries but was lbw when Kuldeep found sharp turn off the pitch. A review failed to save him as HawkEye showed the ball brushing the top of the stumps.

Despite bagging a wicket with his first ball yesterday, Stokes’ troubles with the bat continued as he was dismissed for a 13th time by Ashwin on the stroke of lunch, bowled through the gate by one that skidded on.

Ben Stokes is poised to resume his status as an all-rounder and boost England’s bowling options on a pitch expected to be the most spin-friendly on the tour of India.

Stokes will wait to see how his body reacts to a demanding 35-minute spell of fast bowling in training on Wednesday before deciding if he will send down any overs in the fourth Test, starting on Friday in Ranchi.

He has not bowled competitively since early July and initially had no plans to do so in this series after surgery in November to have stitches in his meniscus and a bone spur removed from his left knee.

Indeed, Stokes had made a “pinky promise” with England’s physiotherapist Ben Davies not to bowl in India but that looks increasingly likely to change with his side 2-1 down in the five-match series.

“Whatever way we decide to go, (if) I feel I am capable of bowling, I will bowl,” said the England captain, who added he would buy Davies a beer if he broke his vow.

“I think there is a possible chance but I will just have to wait and see how everything is.

“I wanted to get a long spell in to see how everything coped whilst doing it then see how I pull up. It is all good at the moment. That is the longest I have bowled in six months.

“Before I went and had the surgery I was told 12-13 weeks before I could start bowling. I am two weeks ahead of that and I am quite far ahead, but there are things I have to think about other than my knee.”

Stokes returning to bowl allows England to have two seamers in their XI and select three frontline spinners in Tom Hartley, Rehan Ahmed and Shoaib Bashir, as well as the part-time offerings of Joe Root.

The playing surface in the Jharkhand capital 48 hours out from the first day of the penultimate match has cracks running down one side of the cut strip, which a bemused Stokes admitted he has never encountered before in India.

The evidence points to a wicket which will offer lavish spin but there may be some variable bounce as well which could aid the quicks as England look to bounce back from a heavy defeat in Rajkot.

“It just looked interesting,” said Stokes, echoing the observation England vice-captain Ollie Pope made a couple of hours earlier.

“If you looked down one side of opposite ends it just looked different to what I am used to seeing, especially out in India.

“It looked green and grassy up in the changing rooms but then you go out there it looked different, very dark and crumbly and quite a few cracks in it.”

One or both of James Anderson and Mark Wood could make way after their heavy workloads in Rajkot, which might mean a first appearance of the series for Ollie Robinson, who has not played competitively since the third Ashes Test last July.

Robinson, who averages 22.21 in 19 Tests, can move the new ball both ways, while his use of reverse swing on the predominantly lifeless pitches of Pakistan last winter caught the eye.

“He’s got unbelievable skills to be a successful bowler anywhere in the world,” Stokes said.

“He has worked incredibly hard while he has been out here. Not playing the first three Tests can be tough and disappointing but I’ve told him he has been a great example of doing the right things and waiting your turn if it comes.”

England’s attacking methods came in for some flak after a 434-run loss last time out but Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum are resisting calls from some ex-players to tinker with their approach.

“You get plaudits when it goes well and a bit of s*** when it doesn’t,” added Stokes, when asked if he was surprised by some of the criticism. “It’s part of it, I’ve been around long enough to know that but we crack on.”

England vice-captain Ollie Pope has described the pitch for the fourth Test in Ranchi as “interesting” but believes this may favour the tourists after back-to-back defeats by India.

The playing surface in the Jharkhand capital 48 hours out from the first day of the penultimate match has cracks running down one side of the cut strip and was watered on Wednesday morning before being briefly left to bake under the sun.

A crusted top layer formed before the area was covered – all of which suggests some balls may explode off the ground and spinners from both sides are likely to be involved from the off.

India hold a 2-1 lead on pitches that have generally been slow turners, with the team that has won the toss coming out on top on all three occasions, but England are gearing up for lavish spin this week.

“It looks an interesting pitch,” Pope said. “It doesn’t necessarily look like a belting wicket at the moment. It kind of looks like one half is good and there’s a lot of cracks (on the other half).”

Pope, though, insisted this does not faze England, who are likely to go back to their policy of selecting one front-line seamer to bowl alongside three spinners that they had in the first two Tests.

That suggests either or both of James Anderson and Mark Wood dropping out, with Ollie Robinson in the frame for the first time in the series, and Tom Hartley, Rehan Ahmed and Shoaib Bashir as the spinners.

“If that does a fair bit like we expect it to having looked at it, it definitely brings us into the game,” Pope said. “If it does spin from ball one, I guess it’s an even playing field.

“We have got some young spinners but I think they’ve bowled well on some pretty good surfaces as well so it definitely brings some wicket-taking opportunities into the game.

“It takes the toss a little bit out of it as well. When the ball’s doing more, your best bet is trying to hit the bowler off his length and try and get him to not bowl where he wants to bowl every ball.”

The return of Ben Stokes as a fully fledged all-rounder is gathering more momentum, with the England captain having an extended bowling session at the batters in the nets without any apparent discomfort.

He was seen briefly speaking to team doctor Glen Rae after he had stopped, raising the prospect of Stokes bowling competitively this week for the first time since last year’s Lord’s Ashes Test.

Stokes had surgery on his left knee in November, with stitches in his meniscus and a big bone spur removed, but had made a “pinky promise” to England’s physiotherapist he would not bowl on this tour.

But Stokes revealed after England’s 434-run defeat in Rajkot he was further along in his progress than was initially suspected to be the case and bowling at optimum level.

“There’s definitely a chance,” Pope, England’s vice-captain, said. “He’s not confirmed it even in the changing room, so we will see. We’ll see how he pulls up, and if that’s good hopefully we will see him with the ball in hand in the game.

“If he’s got full confidence in his knee, I guess you’ve got to trust the medical advice and trust his opinions as well. If he needs a bit of guidance on the pitch then I can be someone to lean on.”

Ollie Pope gushed at how Ben Stokes has “changed the game” as the England captain gears up for his 100th Test this week.

England are back in India following a break in the United Arab Emirates between the second and third Tests, with Stokes set to make his landmark appearance in Rajkot in a match that starts on Thursday.

As well as being England’s ace in the hole and pulling out all the stops when the pressure is at its peak, Stokes’ dynamic style of leadership alongside Brendon McCullum has galvanised the national side.

Stokes boasts 14 victories from 21 Tests – no one who has captained England on 10 or more occasions in the format has a better win percentage (66.67) – and his revolutionary effect was recognised by Pope.

“It’s unbelievable,” England’s vice-captain said. “For anyone to play 100 Tests is an unbelievable achievement. He’s had his highs and lows but what he’s done since he’s been captain has been amazing.

“Stokesy is not someone who likes it being all about him. He doesn’t need those accolades but away from the ground I’m sure we’ll celebrate him, get around him and think of something to do.

“He’s changed the game in a lot of respects. He just has a way of bringing out the best in himself when the team needs him the most.

“There have been so many unbelievable memories and hopefully he can play 100 more. He’s been great to watch, great to be a part of and hopefully there’ll be many more special moments in his career.”

England are a bowler light for the final three Tests after deciding against naming a replacement for slow left-armer Jack Leach, who has travelled back to the UK following a series-ending knee injury.

The sight of Stokes bowling gently in the nets in England training on Tuesday morning left locals wondering whether the 32-year-old would spring a surprise and return to all-rounder status.

But Pope poured cold water on the theory, with Stokes, who has not bowled competitively since July last year, still feeling his way back after surgery to his left knee 11 weeks ago.

“He’s just getting back to bowling and getting his knee right,” Pope said. “That’s why he had surgery – just to make sure that when he is back bowling, he’s going to be bowling quickly and as well as he can.

“I’d be surprised and I guess you never know. But I think he’s just preparing as a batter.”

Following a gripping pair of Tests in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam that has left the series evenly poised at 1-1, England have had a six-day breather in Abu Dhabi to decompress and go again.

“It’s a nice way just to refresh,” Pope added. “The guys are energised coming into these last three Tests.

“We’ve loved every bit of this tour so far. Two competitive games of cricket that have been awesome to play in. But it was a nicely timed break to recharge the batteries.”

West Indies pacer Shamar Joseph was featured as the International Cricket Council (ICC) today revealed the shortlists of nominees for the ICC Men’s and Women’s Player of the Month awards for January 2024.

The ICC Men’s Player of the Month shortlist includes the architects of two memorable Test victories away from home, plus a prolific pacer who celebrated another significant milestone in the longest format.

The orchestrator for what was perhaps one of the most dramatic Test victories in recent memory, Joseph’s month will be long remembered for his bowling efforts in the second innings of the second Test v Australia in Brisbane.

Defending a modest target of 216 for victory, Joseph unleashed a remarkable spell of fast bowling, taking seven for 68 to cue wild celebrations.

This, in addition to taking the wicket of Steve Smith with his first ball in international cricket in a five-wicket-haul in Adelaide, saw him named Player of the Series and nominated for ICC Men’s Player of the Month for the very first time.

Joseph will be vying for the award against Australian quick Josh Hazlewood and English batsman Ollie Pope.

The Australian pacer joined an elite club in January after taking his 250^th wicket in the longest format. Hazlewood played three Tests during the month, starting in fine fashion with four wickets in the second innings of their third matchup against Pakistan, to bowl the tourists out cheaply and contribute to an eight-wicket win in Sydney. The 33-year-old followed up by taking nine wickets in the first Test against West Indies and five in the second Test in Brisbane, clocking up 19 wickets at a sensational average of 11.63.

Facing a 190-run deficit in the first India v England Test in Hyderabad, Pope came to the crease at 45 for one. The 26-year-old then dug in and produced a batting masterclass to overturn the deficit, and set a challenging total which India fell short of. A blend of innovative stroke play and resilient defence characterised Pope’s innings in which he scored 196 in 278 balls, including 21 boundaries. The innings propelled England to a score of 420 before they bowled India out to secure a record-breaking victory.

The nominees for the Women’s award are Australia’s Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney as well as Ireland’s Amy Hunter.

The three nominees for either category are shortlisted based on performances from the first to the last day of each calendar month.

The shortlist is then voted on by the independent ICC Voting Academy* and fans around the world. The ICC Voting Academy comprises prominent members of the cricket fraternity including well-known journalists, former players, broadcasters and members of the ICC Hall of Fame.

The Voting Academy submit their votes by email and hold a 90 per cent share of the vote.

Fans registered with the ICC can vote via the ICC website, accounting for the remaining 10 per cent. Winners are announced every second Monday of the month on ICC’s digital channels. 

Ollie Pope was last man out for a stunning 196 as England’s rousing resistance left India chasing 231 to win the first Test on day four in Hyderabad.

Pope fell four short a deserved double century, clean bowled attempting to scoop Jasprit Bumrah over his shoulder with just the injured Jack Leach for company, as the tourists fought their way to 420 all out in a stirring fightback.

They added 104 runs in the morning session as they became just the ninth away team in history to pass 400 in their second innings on Indian soil. When Ben Stokes departed midway through the third day, leaving the score at 163 for five, such an outcome seemed almost impossible.

Pope resumed on 148, a knock hailed by team-mate Joe Root as an “absolute masterclass”, and made it clear he was not finished yet as he reached 150 then sent a sizzling cover drive racing away for four.

His seventh-wicket partnership with Rehan Ahmed reached 64, the teenager contributing 28, before Bumrah had the 19-year-old caught behind.

That looked like a window of opportunity for India but the arrival of Tom Hartley confounded them even further, the tall left-hander looking entirely untroubled as he joined Pope in a stand of 80 in 106 balls.

The hosts were increasingly listless as England took the game on, Hartley producing a no-look scoop early in his innings before charging Ravichandran Ashwin and lacing him for four down the ground.

The arrival of the new ball did not bring the desired effect, Pope quick to flip it over his head for four more and Hartley pinging Ravindra Jadeja over the top.

When Ashwin did beat the bat, an increasing rarity, the ball nipped past Pope’s outside edge and skimmed away for four byes. Moments after unfurling a glorious straight drive Pope was granted a life on 186, fencing Mohammed Siraj to slip only for KL Rahul to spill a low catch.

Hartley, who joined Pope in using the reverse sweep to quell the spin, was finally undone for 34 by a shin-high grubber from Ashwin and that was the turning point India needed. Mark Wood came and went for a duck, caught behind off Jadeja, and when Leach hobbled to the crease Pope decided to force the issue.

With lunch approaching he decided to stoop low paddle Bumrah over the wicketkeeper, a plan that ended with his off stump out of the ground. It was the end of a career-best knock and the seventh highest ever scored by an Englishman in the second innings.

Ollie Pope had his England team-mates in awe with a remarkable century in the first Test against India, leaving Joe Root scrambling for superlatives.

Root finally settled on “absolute masterclass” as he tried to sum up Pope’s unbeaten 148 on day three in Hyderabad, fine words from a man with more than 11,000 Test runs and 30 centuries under his belt.

England were 190 runs behind when they started their second innings, but Pope defied the perilous match situation, an unpredictable pitch and a world-class bowling attack to produce a career-best knock.

He overcame all three as he hit 17 fours over 208 deliveries and he carried the tourists to 316 for six – a handy lead of 126, in circumstances that could easily have produced an innings defeat.

That it all came in his first match back after six months sidelined by shoulder surgery, on a surface where the next best score from either team stands at 87, was even more impressive.

Should England somehow find a route to an unlikely victory over the next two days, it will surely go down as an all-time classic.

“I’m speechless really…it’s one of the best knocks I’ve ever seen,” said Root.

“I’ve seen a lot of cricket, I’ve played and batted out there in the middle with a lot of brilliant players and to witness that was was really special. There’s a lot of people in our dressing room that have seen and played a lot of cricket that are of the same mind as I am.

“The way that Popey played today, honestly, it’s an absolute masterclass in how to bat in these conditions as an overseas player. We all know he’s got an array of shots and can score all round the wicket, but to have the self-belief and desire to put a score together for the team and get us to where we are now was outstanding.

“The maturity he showed, the smarts, the way he manoeuvred the field…it was unbelievable. You sit here very emotional being part of it, but I’m sure I’ll sit back and still be impressed and wowed by the way he’s played.”

Root has long been England’s standard-bearer in Asia, where he has scored five centuries, including doubles in Galle and Chennai, but suggested he would happily pass the torch to Pope.

“I’m not any more, I think that’s the benchmark,” he said.

“I might have scored a few runs in the sub-continent but not on a surface like that, against an attack like that.

“I didn’t even mind when he ‘big dogged’ me and said, ‘Can you do the press tonight?’ He spoke this morning in front of the group and and he’s grasped the moment, taken responsibility and backed it up in his actions. That’s what you want from leaders within the dressing room.

“As an old-timer in this team, it’s great to see these young lads coming in, really putting their stamp on things and leading from the front.”

England will want to add plenty more runs on day four to flip the pressure back on their opponents and will be hampered in the fourth innings by an injury to lead spinner Jack Leach.

It is understood he is suffering from pain and swelling, but Root is full of positivity about the way his side have taken the fight to hosts who have lost just three times in their last 46 games at home.

“Regardless of what happens for the rest of the game, I think we’ve laid down some good markers and shown that we have got the tools and skills to really compete in these conditions,” he said.

“Dream the dream. We’ll go to bed and think of what could be tomorrow, then throw everything at the day.”

Ollie Pope led the resistance with a brilliant, battling century as England fought hard to keep the first Test against India alive in Hyderabad.

Faced with the unenviable task of overturning a 190-run first-innings deficit, the vice-captain dug deep to make an unbeaten 148 as his side found their way to 316 for six at stumps on day three.

While the tourists still have plenty of work ahead of them to turn the pressure fully back on India, they showed admirable steel to build a lead of 126 with four wickets still in hand.

Pope’s fifth Test hundred was the mainstay, marking a welcome return after six months out following surgery on a dislocated shoulder.

The Surrey batter had not played since the second Ashes Test last summer and, without any warm-up games to find his feet, looked short of rhythm when he was dismissed for just one on the first day.

He started sketchily again, aiming an errant reverse sweep at his second ball as he searched for scoring shots, but grew in stature as he put together an innings of real substance.

Having bounded along to his half-century in just 54 deliveries, he took 100 more to reach three figures.

The longer Pope took, the more controlled he appeared, and this was a knock that reinvigorated a contest that seemed destined to slip away from England in a hurry.

The scoreboard looked ominous when skipper Ben Stokes fell at 163 for five, India still 27 ahead, but Pope and Ben Foakes, with 34, gritted their teeth in a partnership worth 112.

India began the day on 421 for seven and were mopped up efficiently for the addition of just 15 runs.

Joe Root, continuing his unexpected emergence as his side’s most threatening bowler, snapped up two in two balls, Ravindra Jadeja lbw for 87 and Jasprit Bumrah for a golden duck. Rehan Ahmed provided the finishing touch when he zipped one low through Axar Patel.

If India losing three wickets without a run caused jitters in the away dressing room they were not evident in a dashing opening stand of 45 between Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett.

Crawley reverse swept with authority and lifted Patel down the ground for six, but was gone for 31 before the end of the 10th over, nicking Ravichandran Ashwin to slip.

Pope’s presence was not immediately reassuring, hitting fresh air almost immediately as he attempted to get off the mark with a reverse sweep of his own, but Duckett’s arsenal of sweeps proved a reliable source of runs.

England took lunch at 89 for one and were up to 113 when a masterful spell of reverse swing from Bumrah cut their fightback down.

He should have had Duckett lbw but saw his appeal wrongly shrugged away by the on-field umpire and his captain.

Undeterred he came again, shaping the ball through the air, through the gap that Duckett’s lavish drive left and sent his off stump flying for 47.

Root followed after just six balls, trapped in front by another that tailed in and thudded his front pad. On a pitch that had rendered the pace bowlers an afterthought for so long, it was an exceptional intervention from Bumrah.

It was credit to Pope that he not only survived it but also kept his score moving, picking off boundaries and topping them up with hard running between the wickets.

He needed a partner to help but lost Jonny Bairstow for 10, offering no shot to Jadeja’s arm ball, and then saw Ashwin snake one past Stokes’ outside edge and into the top of off.

England were still 18 behind at the start of the evening session but Pope and Foakes knuckled down to turn that into a workable lead.

Foakes watched the ball on to his bat and took minimal risks, while Pope showed real poise as he built his score with a new sense of calm.

By now the reverse sweep that had left him looking vulnerable earlier was coming out of the middle of the bat and providing a vital supply of boundaries.

He gradually became more inventive as he sought gaps in the field, leaving India scratching their heads as they tried to pin him down.

He scrambled three off Jadeja to reach a hard-won hundred, his first in the second innings and third overseas, and marked it in under-stated fashion.

Foakes’ stay was ended by a grubber from Patel, who blotted his copy book by dropping Pope on 110.

That allowed Pope to walk off unbeaten at the close with Ahmed at his side, dreaming of further heroics on day four.

England were fighting to keep the first Test alive after a double strike from Jasprit Bumrah tightened India’s hold on day three in Hyderabad.

Faced with the unenviable task of overturning a 190-run first-innings deficit, the tourists reached 172 for five at tea, with Ollie Pope unbeaten on 67.

Bumrah took the lead with a magical spell of pace bowling on a pitch that has largely rendered the seamers as an afterthought, removing the fluent Ben Duckett and key man Joe Root.

Pairing speed through the air with devilish reverse swing he sent Duckett’s off-stump flying for 47 and then trapped Root lbw for just two to reassert India’s strong position.

England had enjoyed a positive start to the day, taking three quick wickets in the morning session to bowl India out before reaching a promising 113 for one at a lively scoring rate.

Bumrah’s classy intervention knocked the stuffing from their burgeoning counter-attack and when captain Ben Stokes was beautifully bowled by Ravichandran Ashwin late in the afternoon session the net closed further still.

Play began with India on 421 for seven, adding another 15 before losing their remaining wickets without scoring.

Root snapped up two in two balls, Ravindra Jadeja lbw for 87 and Bumrah castled for a golden duck. Rehan Ahmed provided the finishing touch, zipping one low through Axar Patel and ushering the game along to its decisive moment.

Zak Crawley and Duckett made a typically positive start, zoning out the precarious match situation to clear 45 from the deficit despite considerable scoreboard pressure.

After a couple of polite new-ball overs from Bumrah it was spin at both ends and the initial signs were good.

Crawley sent a couple of reverse sweeps to the boundary boards before trying something even more expansive, moving his feet to the pitch and lifting Patel for six down the ground.

He hurried along to 31 in 33 balls but his fun was shut down in the 10th over, Ashwin clipping the outside edge with a precise delivery that nestled in Rohit Sharma’s hands.

Pope started sketchily, busy but uncertain in his movements, while Duckett was poised. Trusting his arsenal of sweeps and reverses he guided the score to 89 for one at lunch, with the hosts’ lead just into three figures.

England continued chipping away until Bumrah returned to the fray early in the afternoon. He should have had Duckett lbw for 39 but saw his appeal shrugged away by the on-field umpire and his captain, who declined to call for DRS.

Undeterred he came again, shaping the ball through the air, through the gap that Duckett’s lavish drive left and violently into the off stump.

Root was next to succumb, beaten on the crease after just six balls and trapped in front. He sent the decision upstairs but found no reprieve.

Pope was still making the odd mistake but he rode his luck and continued scoring briskly as he brought up his first half-century in India at nearly a run-a-ball.

England still needed a big partnership and were unable to find one as the spinners found their rhythm.

Jonny Bairstow was bowled for 10 offering no stroke to Jadeja, mis-reading one that skidded on with the arm, and Stokes saw Ashwin clip the top of off with a ball that snaked past his outside edge.