India opened Day 2 of the 3rd Test at Lord’s in style. After the English crowd celebrated Joe Root’s gritty century, it was Jasprit Bumrah who gave reason for the visitors to celebrate with a sensational delivery to dismiss England captain Ben Stokes. Shockingly, the pacer also dismissed Root in his next over, with the ball crashing onto his stumps.IND vs ENG 3rd Test Live ScoreBumrah continued his habit of succeeding in getting the upper hand over Joe Root as he ended his innings at Lord’s in style. With the second new ball working wonders for the visitors, Bumrah capitalized on the momentum gained from Stokes’ wicket. With a delivery slightly over full length, the ball hit Root’s bat on the inside edge before it went crashing onto his middle stump.A quick look at rivalry between the two in the red-ball format makes it all the more easier to see who has the upper hand. While Root has managed to get off 311 runs in 612 balls, the England batter has been dismissed 11 times by the pacer. Root ended his innings with 104 runs from 199 balls. In the very next ball, Bumrah also got the wicket of Chris Woakes. As for Stokes, coming around the wicket, Bumrah sent Stokes’ off stump flying with a peach of a ball. The England skipper stood momentarily at the crease, visibly stunned. His dismissal capped off a subdued innings, which had already drawn attention for its uncharacteristically cautious tempo, far from the hallmark ‘Bazball’ aggression — and for signs of a groin injury that seemed to affect his movement and strokeplay on Day 1. Stokes walked back for 44 from 110 balls. Stokes and Root exiting early on the second morning has left England’s middle order with the responsibility of steering the innings forward, especially after the unusual decision to bat first — a call rarely seen in England’s recent home Tests under the leadership of Brendon McCullum and Stokes.
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Do you think England’s decision to bat first was wise?
In fact, this is only the second time in 12 home Tests under their regime that England have chosen to bat first after winning the toss. The previous instance came in the 2023 Ashes opener at Edgbaston — a match England narrowly lost by two wickets.
