Whenever the India XI has flashed up at the start of a Test this summer, one of the first thoughts has been the length of their tail. But fair play to them. Their lower order have worked on their batting and on Sunday— for the third time in the series — they made an important contribution.
First there was Lord’s on the last morning, when Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah put on 89 and took the game away from England. Then, on the first day here, Shardul Thakur helped turn a potential 150 all out into 191, which kept his side in the game.