It was a struggle for India on day 3 and although the game has not zipped past them, they have to chase a target which can well be tricky on a surface which is conducive to spin bowling. Moeen Ali tormented the Indian batting on the same surface back in 2014 and then once again wreaked havoc in the first innings and with footholes so very apparent on the pitch, he should be licking his lips.
However, Cheteshwar Pujara believes the Indian batsmen should be able to tackle the Moeen threat and adapt to the conditions.
'Our batters will have a better game plan'
"When he bowled in the first innings, the wicket was a little quicker. Some of our batsmen could have batted well against him, but he is a good bowler. I'm not trying to take any credit away from how he bowled, but we still should have batted better against him. In the second innings our batters will have a better game plan against Moeen," Pujara said after day 3.
India's centurion from the first innings believes that the game is not entirely out of India's grasp and it requires solid temperament to chase down whatever England post. On a pitch which is bone dry and where the ball will spin, Pujara backed his batsmen to come good citing the familiarity in conditions.
"We have got a lot of experience playing in such conditions back home. So, I think our batsmen would have realised... we started off well in the first innings but lost too many wickets in the middle phase," he added.
Pujara believed that the batsmen have realised what they need to do, and they will put up a good show in the second innings.
It was not an entirely happy day for India's lead spinner R Ashwin as he managed to pick up only one wicket in 35 overs and struggled to pitch the ball in the rough and derive assistance.
However, Pujara defended him and said that it was just not his day and despite trying his best and landing the ball in the right areas, he could not get wickets which happen in cricket and one should not doubt his prowess.
