India will have two things to do on Day 3 of the fifth Test in London – try and get England out as soon as possible, and then bat for as long as possible, the latter something they have struggled to do for quite some time on this tour.
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Day 3 of the 5th Test in London is set for a 11 am local time (3.30 pm IST, 6 am ET) start with live coverage on Star Sports 1, Star Sports 3 and Star Sports HD1 in India. The match can also be watched via live streaming online HERE in India. Catch the match in the US on ESPN 3 or by live streaming HERE. Viewers in the UK can watch the match on Sky Sports 2 and listen to the action on BBC Radio Five Live Extra. Live stream the action HERE or HERE, while viewers can also listen to the proceedings on Day 3 HERE.
England took complete control of the final Test at the Oval courtesy sound knocks from Alastair Cook and Gary Ballance and a wonderfully crafted 92 from Joe Root, with the hosts finishing Day 2 on 385 for seven, a big lead of 237 runs.
"If it wasn't for him, we could have a 150-run lead," Balance, who made 64, said about Root's knock to ECB's official website. "He has carried on and scored quickly towards the end of the day there.
"He has really put us in a good position. Rooty and Jos [Buttler] played well together so hopefully Rooty can go and get a big hundred tomorrow [Sunday].
"Rooty is not out and Chris Jordan can bat. [Stuart] Broad and Jimmy [Anderson] have scored runs this series too. It's obviously a great position. We bowled brilliantly yesterday, batted well towards the end of the day and then we carried on the momentum today.
"We have got ourselves to a lead of 230-odd and in a great position. We have worked hard for it. The job is not done yet and we are going to have to bowl on that tomorrow."
India need a minor miracle now just to save this Test, especially considering the manner in which they have batted. Unfortunately for MS Dhoni, his bowlers just haven't been able to bail their batsmen out.
On quite a few occasions, the Indians bowled well with luck and just that ability to constantly be in the zone to force a wicket, evading them time and again.
England, on the other hand, are in that zone, with everything they touch seemingly turning to gold. And once they end their first innings on Day 3, the India batsmen will have to bat out of their skins, and then some, to, at the very least, make a game of it, rather than surrendering tamely like they did in Manchester.
"The sun came out today and the pitch had flattened out a bit today," R Ashwin, who took two wickets, said on Saturday. "We toiled through the day and gave our best. It is about confidence at the end of the day and also enjoying the game we all love so much.
"So, we were talking in the field today that we can do a better job in the second innings. Everybody has a bad day."
