2 weeks ago
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Jofra Archer wheeled away towards square leg, embraced Shoaib Bashir – the first fielder who crossed his path – and let out a roar that was part jubilation, part relief.
The third ball of his long-awaited comeback had pitched on the leg stump of left-hander Yashasvi Jaiswal, moved down the slope and finished, via a thick outside edge, in the reassuring hands of Harry Brook at second slip. To this champagne moment, Lord's raised a collective glass. By way of a bonus, the speedgun was showing 90mph.
On another engrossing afternoon of an engrossing series, it was tempting to view Archer's first Test wicket in 1,598 days as a glimpse of the future – one in which England attack opponents with hostility, and no matter the pace of the pitch or the state of the ball.
Gus Atkinson plans to return from injury for the fourth Test at Old Trafford, and Mark Wood has not given up hopes of appearing in the fifth at The Oval. Archer's mere presence has encouraged thoughts of giddy scenarios to come, and England's biggest challenge may be to manage expectations. Good luck with that.
Yet by removing Jaiswal, his IPL team-mate at Rajasthan Royals and one of the tourists' batting guns, for just 13, Archer had indisputably given his side early control of an Indian reply to England's 387 – a handy opening bid on a surface that had quickened a touch after the sluggishness of the first day, but remained no friend of fluent strokeplay.
When Joe Root lunged low to his left at first slip, pulling off a blinder to dismiss Karun Nair for 40 off Ben Stokes, India were 74 for two. It was Root's 211th catch, and quite possibly his best, taking him clear of Rahul Dravid at the top of Test cricket's fielding list.
Jofra Archer marked his Test cricket return with a wicket with just his third ball of the innings
The fast bowlers, who has been hampered by injury, wheeled away in celebration and let out a huge roar
Joe Root also secured his 37th century, adding to his overnight total of 99 from the first ball
And England were cock-a-hoop when Chris Woakes, kept on by Stokes after 10 wayward overs for 46, had Shubman Gill superbly caught by Jamie Smith, standing up to the stumps. Since Gill had entered the game with 585 runs in two Tests and designs on Don Bradman's all-time series record of 974, his removal for 16 demanded one of the old newspaper sandwich boards that once greeted Bradman's demise: 'He's out!'
At stumps, the immovable KL Rahul, who has quietly averaged 72 in this series, had 53, and with him was Rishabh Pant, making light of the finger injury that has seen him cede the gloves to Dhruv Jurel. India were 145 for three, still 242 behind. We have a game on our hands.
The day had begun with Root, having slept fitfully on 99, flashing Jasprit Bumrah's first ball in the air through gully for the boundary that took him to his 37th Test hundred, his 11th against India and his eighth at Lord's – the stats queuing up to confirm his class.
England's issue, though, was that he was up against class too, and Bumrah now imposed himself on the morning as only the greats can.
First Stokes, passed fit to bat – and later to bowl – after first-evening concerns over his groin, was bowled for 44 by a beauty that nipped back and hit the top of off. Bumrah then bowled Root, inside-edging a push on to his stumps for 104, and next ball made expert use of DRS after umpire Reiffel had failed to spot that Woakes had feathered one he might have left alone.
With Bumrah on a hat-trick and England 271 for seven, the graft of the first day was in danger of going to waste. Instead, Smith exploited the life granted to him on five by Rahul at second slip, as well as India's desire to change the ball with which Bumrah had caused them trouble. It would be 84 crucial runs before another wicket fell, with Smith and – for the first time in Tests – Brydon Carse scoring fifties.
Bumrah hit the stumps for the fourth time in the innings when he bowled Archer to bring up another five-for, and a good job too: between them, Siraj and Akash Deep, the destroyers at Edgbaston, finished with two for 177.
All the while, a funereal over-rate threatened to bring the game into disrepute, with both sides as inert as each other. Just 22 overs were bowled before lunch, and at tea there remained 44. After two of the day's three sessions, in other words, almost half the overs were unbowled.
When Root dived low to dismiss Karun Nair for 40 off Ben Stokes, India were 74 for two
It was Root's 211th catch, and quite possibly his best, taking him clear of Rahul Dravid at the top of Test cricket's fielding list
India fought back, though, and KL Rahul reached his 50 and is unbeaten going into day three
In Chris Woakes, Test cricket may be seeing the last of a whole-hearted, skilful bowler who, at his best, made home conditions do his bidding
TOP SPIN AT THE TEST
Joe Root’s 37th Test hundred took him outright fifth on the all-time list, one ahead of Australia’s Steve Smith and one behind Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara.
He became the third batsman to score three successive hundreds at Lord’s following his twin centuries last summer against Sri Lanka. The first two were Jack Hobbs and Michael Vaughan.
England’s 387 used up 112.3 overs, their longest innings in the Bazball era when they have batted first.
Jamie Smith moved to 1,000 Test runs in his 21st innings, joint-fastest among wicketkeepers with South Africa’s Quinton de Kock.
The ongoing grumbles about the ball didn't help, but nor did the umpires' slow-motion gaits and disinclination to hurry the players along. At stumps, spectators had been deprived of 15 overs, or one-sixth of the day's allocation. With tickets costing as much as £175, we are reaching the stage when fans should demand refunds.
Thank goodness, then, that the cricket was so absorbing, with Archer's opening spell averaging 89.8mph, the third-fastest new-ball burst for England since Cricviz began their measurements in 2006. Even in his later spells, he was approaching 90. In all, his 10 overs cost 22, and kept India honest after their run-gluts at Headingley and Edgbaston.
Woakes, alas, looked more old nag than thoroughbred. Jaiswal took his first over for 13, and his lack of control at a ground where he has often thrived should give the selectors pause for thought. And if his dismissal of Gill lifted his spirits, it was very much against the run of play.
Whisper it, but Test cricket may be seeing the last of a whole-hearted, skilful bowler who, at his best, made home conditions do his bidding. If Woakes can sign off with one more win, he will at least go out on a high.
