India vs England Highlights, 3rd Test: Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav at stumps as IND get to 326/5 in Rajkot

It felt very good. To come to the ground. I have been playing since the age of 6. It was my father's love and my dream to play for India for him. I was padded up four nand half hours. I told myself I have waited for years, let me show more patience and wait a bit more. My father has worked really hard on my and my brother's cricket. This is the produest moment of my life. 

On his run out: Runout was a bit of misunderstanding. It happens. He came to dressing room and said thoda sa misunderstanding ho gaya tha...(run out)

When I was new to crease, I was talking a lot to jadeja. I like to chat. When you are new, there was nervousness: would I get out etc. When I tried playing that first sweep, he saud take your time..

There was a bit of nervousness early but once I got into my zone it was fine. I knew runs would come. All my efforts of father has paid off. It felt good he saw me getting the cap. My wife was also emotional. I felt very happy that I could do this.

How did you control your nerves: " I have been doing this for long. The fielders were all up. I play the spinners really well and hit when the loose balls came

Playing test match is a bit different. Once you understand the environment, you get used to it. Like I did in the middle after the early phase. This is cricket that I have played for so long..

That's stumps for today. It has been India's day through and through. While there was some hope for the English fans in Rajkot in the morning as the day went on it increasingly became India's day to the extent that if Sarfaraz had not got out at the end India would have pulled this match out of England's reach tomorrow with just the way tempo at Sarfaraz was batting. However, it is not meant to be India once again gave away opportunities and let England come back. Mark Wood has been fantastic for the visitors. That's from us today. Signing off Lalith Kalidas and Tanishq. Please do join us tommorow at the same time for all the live action.

Well,, a lot has happened in the last 10 minutes or so. Ravindra Jadeja on 99 pushed the ball to mid-on and took a couple of steps giving an impression that he was going to take a single however, after a couple of steps the batter refrained. However, Sarfaraz Khan from the other did run a fair ground and when he realized Jadeja was not coming he turned back but could not make the ground and the fielder hit the stumps. Rohit was seen throwing his cap out with frustration. This would leave a bitter-sweet taste for the Indians and Jadeja eventually completes his ton and does a subdued celebration.

England would probably like to bowl to Jadeja rather than Sarfaraz at this point in the game. The odd ball for spinners is keeping a touch low which is an encouraging sign for the Indian spinners later in the game. A new ball is also available for England and we might see Stokes refrain from taking it tonight and try and use it tomorrow morning when there would be some moisture on the surface which will cherry on the top for James Anderson. Also a spare of thought for Mark Wood who has bowled his heart out in these hot conditons on a flat deck today.

Sarfaraz continues to pile on misery on the England bowlers. The young batter walked in when Jadeja was on 84 while he is still in his 90s Sarfaraz has almost gone to his 60s. This is what England had to be careful of with him. Letting him get a start and run away with the game and that is what he is doing at the moment. This session has completely turned the complexion of this game. The way Sarfaraz is batting at the moment we might see Wood come in for a spell before the end of the day's play.

Sarfaraz is playing a lovely cameo here. He is giving England treatment of their own medicine. While there was a chirp when he came in as he continued to play his shots he silenced the crowd and also the fielders near him walked away. As we update Sarfaraz has reached 50 of just 48 balls. What a sublime inning this has been from the youngster he has been biding his time for years in domestic cricket and now delivers at the first opportunity he gets. He is changing the tide of this game here and now. 

Sarfaraz has got himself to a start here. He has reached to 20 in no time. He seems to be a a busy player who likes to keep the scoreboard ticking and so far it has worked. He is playing the ball with soft hands and pushing them in gaps in for ones and twos. Along with that he is also putting the bowlers under pressure by taking the odd chance and getting that boundary away. He is almost striking at 100 now.

A journey that is all heart ??

Hear from a proud father on a very memorable day for Sarfaraz Khan ? - By @ameyatilak#TeamIndia | #INDvENG | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/Imk7OTuSVM

— BCCI (@BCCI) February 15, 2024

A short ball outside the off-stump and Sarfaraz square drives it for a boundary. This is what Rehan needs to be careful of where he has to make sure not to give these freebies away and let the debutant Sarfaraz get off to a brisk start. Once again it is becoming a common theme with England to be slow on their overs. Today once again overate with which they have been bowling has been sluggish. There has been a discussion after every ball between Stokes and bowlers and also through overs there have been constant field changes that have not let the game move on whatsoever. 

Sarfaraz walks in and gets off the mark. He is a naturally attacking player and the situation of the game lets him express himself. The last over might be the end of the spell for Wood for now. Jadeja is also nearing his three-figure mark. It will be interesting to see what sort of tactics Stokes has in store. As of now, Rehan is operating who was a touch expensive in the previous over as Rohit took a bit of liking to his tired bowling. Rehan cannot afford to bowl any sort of that kind of delivery for the new batter.

Well, Rohit loses his patience and plays a pull shot despite 20 fielders on the leg side. However, the irony of it the man who gets criticised for getting caught near the boundary could only hit it as far as Ben Stokes at mid-wicket. The joy on Stokes' face and disappointment on Jadeja's face said it all. Mark Wood was delighted with that wicket as Rohit at every short ball was only looking to play it down the ground and get singles away however, eventually could not resist his temptation and got out. Nevertheless a lovely innings from the Indian skipper. 

Wood bowling a barrage of short balls to batters is not a bad ploy at all from Stokes as the wicket is pretty flat. However, the question here is how long will he bowl this way. It is quite hot here and Wood is somewhat of a one-dimensional bowler in the sense he hardly throws in an odd slower one or any variation for that matter that might surprise the batter. This is something Stokes needs to think about. In the second innings in Hyderabad, Wood did slip in a few slow ones but they were not accurate. Given the field right now is telling the batter what is going to come at them and they are prepared for it. It might not be a bad ploy to slip ina slower ones to surprise the batters. 

Heart-in-mouth stuff as Jadeja tried to play a ball on the leg-side and the ball got the top edge of the bat and flew over the square-leg boundary. The fielder at square-leg on the boundary was standing 10 meters inside the boundary rather than staying on the boundary. This might be due to Rajkot having longer boundaries and the fielder hoping for a mistake from Jadeja. The tactic is clear from Wood he is going to bowl a few around the nose of Jadeja and see how he reacts to it. As the left-hander a tendency to walk down the track to pacers from time to time.

Sarfaraz Khan has been churning runs over the years in domestic cricket. Despite the runs, a Test debut was the thing he only could dream of before today. But on Thursday he and his father Naushad Khan’s dream became a reality ahead of the third Test between India vs England in Rajkot as Sarfaraz was presented with his debut cap by former leg-spinner Anil Kumble.

Naushad was seen in tears as his son was presented with the cap, He later hugged him with joy and kissed the Indian badge on his Sarfaraz’s cap. (Read more)

Rohit has come out and scored his 100 and we are seeing James Anderson and Reham Ahmed start this session. It will be interesting to see what the tempo of this session from Indian batters would be. It has been hotter than what we had for the first two games and though we had a break of a considerable period between the Tests it has been England who has been on the field for longer in this series and the young spinners might not be used to this kind of heat. Anderson has already bowled over 12 overs today and this won't be a longer spell from him either and neither can Stokes turn to Wood for longer spells.

India skipper Rohit Sharma slammed his 11th Test hundred during the third Test against England at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot on Thursday.

Opting to bat after winning the toss, India suffered three early jolts with Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Rajat Patidar departing in quick time. Rohit joined Ravindra Jadeja at 33 for three and steered the team to Lunch at 93 for three with his first half-century of the series. (Read more)

We are back for the final session of play here in Rajkot. It will be interesting to see what sort of tactics England will come up with and how Rohit and Jadeja go about their batting.

The next time Rahul Dravid walks to the pitch for one of his inspections before and during the game, the curator might well jibe, ‘Problem idhar nahi, dressing room mey hai’ (there isn’t a problem here, it’s in the dressing room).

In a remarkable first hour of play, on a pitch with no devils, India contrived to lose three quick wickets after winning the toss. It could well have been four before the total reached 50, and who knows how many more after that but Joe Root dropped an offering from Rohit Sharma, who went on to score a half-century. (Read more from Sriram Veera in Rajkot)

Well, there we are Jadeja played a lovely pull shot over mid-wicket in that final over against Joe Root, to sum up the session. It has been India all over England. Yes, the wicket is flat but credit must be given to the batters for the way have played in the session. It is the first time a wicket did not fall in a session in this series. Sublime batting from Rohit and Jadeja. Now it is time to take a breather for both the bowling and batting sides as especially for England as Stokes once again has been shown the harsh realities of playing in Indian conditions against this formidable side.

Rohit Sharma played a lovely flick of the wrist reminiscent of MS Dhoni's helicopter off Rehan Ahmed. The bat made a crisp sound of the bat and ran away to the boundary. This has been a brilliant tempo from Rohit. Usually, we tend to see this with the Indian skipper where he struggles to find the right balance between attack and defense but today his pacing has been near perfect. This is what the Indian batting has been missing. Meanwhile, Jadeja is quickly ticking the scoreboard and keeping the partnership growing. 

Rehan Ahmed and Joe Root have been brought into the attack now. Seems like Ben Stokes has dangled a carrot here. This is a spell of bowling that might buy him a wicket while batters try to take change against the bowlers or India might run away with it. It was Rehan Ahmed who did the damage after Tea on Day 1 on Vizag. Yes, he did bowl a few ones but Indian batters did play shots and throw their wickets away. It will be interesting to see how Rohit and Jadeja will approach this passage of play.

After the initial jitters things have settled down nicely here for India. Both Ravindra Jadeja and Rohit Sharma are stitching a valuable partnership. This is where we might so Ben Stokes try and use his funky fields as nothing is happening in the game and Indian batters are motoring along nicely. Yes, there seems to be a bit of reverse-swing for Mark Wood but it is not as prominent as it was in Vizag yet. However, one thing going for Stokes has been blessed with is Tom Hartley and he has been excellent once again today. Meanwhile, as we update Jadeja has reached his half-century and does his vintage sword celebration.

Wood tests Rohit's resolve with another sharp attack at the stumps. He moves one gently outside the off-stump and it beats Rohit on the edge. Excellent take from Foakes as the ball keeps low.

Hartley errs with a length ball outside the off-stump and Rohit nimbly shifts to the backfoot and cuts it through point for FOUR.

Wood is back for another spell. Jadeja is having some issues with the sightscreen and Wood goes all the way to the boundary to get it fixed. A bumper from Wood and Jadeja rides the bounce and slaps it pas deep point for FOUR. 

Sriram Veera reports from Rajkot: The last couple of overs from James Anderson to Jadeja have been enthralling to watch. From around the stumps, he has been angling them in. This innings, Jadeja has been far more positive than recent past. With that, though, has come an effort to punch balls. And so he went repeatedly and the ball would cut through the bat and pad. And after a while, Anderson had one straighten from that angle and Jadeja was beaten on the outside edge 

There is some grassy patch on the track and the ball has occasionally skid on from there. A couple of cracks too and when the ball hits them, it has dunked a touch. Also as Jadeja attested before the match, it's been a hard pitch, and bounce has been good when the ball hits those non-grassy areas.

Anderson offers a rare loosener on the pads and Rohit clips it fine for FOUR, beating the fine-leg fielder.

Sriram Veera from Rajkot: For Rohit now, Tom Hartley has a midoff in Stokes and a straightish long off in Duckett.

Rohit gentle opens the face of the bat and guides the ball past first-slip for three runs. 

Jadeja continues to keep Anderson at bay with a neat defence. Anderson does not deter from beating the blade and succeeds with a sharp delivery that straightens after moving in. 

Beauty! Anderson lines one in and cuts Jadeja in half with a sharp nip-backer that sails over the stumps to Foakes.

Rohit paddles Hartley past short fine-leg for two runs. Bang! Rohit steps out to a loopy delivery and pumps it down the ground for a massive SIX. He equals MS Dhoni with his 78th maximum in Tests, the second-most for India behind Virender Sehwag.

Anderson replaces Hartley. He nips one in to hit Jadeja high on the pads.

Wood keeps the ball on a fuller length and Rohit neatly digs it out towards the bowler. A single to follow. Wood rushes one high onto Jadeja's pads, nearly flooring him and sends out a loud appeal. Clearly sliding down leg and the umpire denies his cry.

Hartley floats one in and Rohit remarkably leaves it a shade outside the off-stump. A quicker one to follow and Rohit taps it to mid-wicket. Maiden.

Wood comes around the wicket and moves the ball in sharply. Jadeja leans forward and gets a thick outside-edge to trickle past second-slip for FOUR to third. He slides another in and Jadeja flicks it through mid-wicket for two runs. 

Hartley continues to vary his pace through the air as Rohit attempts to take him on. A touch of room and Rohit cuts it hard but fails to beat the cover fielder. 

Wood offers room first-up and Jadeja leans into a smooth drive through cover for two runs. Wood wavers in length and Jadeja pushes the ball for three runs past mid-on and brings up 100 for India.

Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja return to the crease. A pivotal session for India with the bat. Mark Wood is back into the attack.

5?0? for captain Rohit Sharma! ? ?

His 17th Test fifty as #TeamIndia move past 80.

Follow the match ?? https://t.co/FM0hVG5pje#TeamIndia | #INDvENG | @ImRo45 | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/fOrJssYKcs

— BCCI (@BCCI) February 15, 2024

Rehan Ahmed into the attack on the stroke of Lunch. Slower one through the air and it beats Rohit's blade outside the off-stump. Quick stumping from Foakes and the umpire refers upstairs. No trouble for Rohit with his backfoot planted well within the crease. Another one keeps low and Rohit taps it to mid-on and finds a single. And India moves to Lunch at 93/3.

Jadeja is livid with himself as he fails to put Root past the mid-on fielder. He gets another full-toss and drills it straighter down the ground for FOUR and brings up the fifty-run stand with Rohit. Short outside the off-stump and Jadeja slaps it through point for another FOUR. A single to end the over and there will be another over before Lunch.

Loud shout as Hartley lines one in past Rohit's blade to the pad. Umpire Dharmasena is unmoved. England deliberate a review but decides against it. Seems like it's missing leg. Replays suggest umpire's call on wicket. Rohit flicks one away and reels in two runs to brings his 17th Test fifty and first of the series.

A couple of singles and Root strays to Rohit's pads. He sweeps it fine down leg and fetches a FOUR that takes him to 49.

Hartley lines one in and Rohit gets an inside-edge down towards fine-leg for a single. India is aiming to negotiate this brief little passage before Lunch with minimal fuss. 

Joe Root replaces Anderson. He immediately comes from the stumps to Jadeja. Skimming through quickly as Jadeja defends well with soft hands. Maiden.

Hartley continues to vary his lengths and test Rohit. Four dots and he hands a short delivery, duly put to the mid-wicket fence by Rohit who moves into the 40s with a FOUR.

Anderson comes round the stumps to Jadeja. He maintains a tight line against the stumps and Jadeja taps them back sturdily. Anderson switches back to over the wicket and Jadeja retains his solidity in defence. Maiden for Anderson.

Hartley slides one in and Rohit shimmies down the track and pumps it towards the sightscreen for FOUR. 

Anderson continues. A short-leg in place for Rohit. Rohit takes a chance against Anderson with a pre-meditated charge down the ground and lobs the ball just over mid-on. Sub-fielder Dan Lawrence gives chae and keeps it down to two. Shot. Now that's more like Rohit. Anderson pulls his length back and Rohit slaps the ball through extra cover for FOUR with minimal movement from the crease.

Hartley overpitches and Jadeja drives the ball firmly down the ground past the bowler for FOUR. India will need this pair to see off another hour to Lunch.

Loud shout and given! Anderson is back and gets one to nip into Rohit's pad once again. The umpire raises his finger but Rohit reviews. Replays suggest a spike on the UltraEdge as Rohit gets a faint inside-edge off the delivery. He survives. Anderson continues to tail the ball in and it hits Rohit on the back thigh this time. He's in some discomfort and calls for the physio to hop in. IND 50/3 in 14 overs

Tight close-in fielders for Rohit. Hartley continues to slide the ball in nicely to keep Rohit on his toes. Fuller delivery in the blockhole and Rohit digs it out back to the bowler. Fraction short and wide, and Rohit rocks back to cut through point for FOUR. Straighter delivery and Rohit lifts Hartley over mid-wicket for another FOUR. Is there an edge? Hartley loops one in and Rohit's attempted swipe across the line takes a toe-edge and zips through Joe Root's palms at first-slip. Hartley is in disbelief as Rohit finds a big reprieve.

Wood continues to burst through the batters. He lines one past Jadeja's outside-edge with another delivery that straightens after pitching on length. He angles one in and Jadeja slices it to backward square-leg for a single. Short ball and Rohit furiously pulls it to deep square-leg for one run.

Hartley tests Rohit with slower deliveries, looping them up in the air. Rohit employs a lunge forward to tap the ball watchfully. Length delivery outside off-stump and Rohit gets a toe on it towards mid-off as the ball keeps low again. Fuller delivery and Rohit solidly taps it back. Maiden for Hartley. 

Wood takes a crack at Rohit with a bouncer that moves down leg to the keeper. Another bouncer and Rohit cops one flush on the helmet. That's a pretty rare sight to see Rohit not offering a shot to the short ball.

First entry of spin as Tom Hartley replaces Anderson after a four-over spell. A slip and short-leg in place for Rohit. He sweeps the first ball to backward square for a single. A loopy delivery to Patidar and he defends it comfortably on the front foot. A slider on length and Patidar works it to the mid-wicket fielder. WICKET! Trouble for India. Patidar is taken aback by the extra bounce from length and he ends up lobbing the ball straight to cover. Hartley strikes straightaway as Ravindra Jadeja walks in at 5.

Rajat Patidar c Duckett b Hartley 5 (15b 1x4)

Wood digs one short and Rajat stands up and punches it crisply through cover for FOUR. Wood peppers him with another short ball but Patidar easily taps it down to the pitch. 

Rohit flicks Anderson through mid-wicket for a single. 

Sriram Veera from Rajkot: Legslip moves in for Rajat, who seems surprised and turns around and follows the fielder to settle in there. The ball is outside off and he lets it go. Bazball field set up in full swing already.

The odd ball is keeping a touch low. Wood tails the ball in and it keeps low as Gill attempts to defend on the front foot. WICKET! The wobble seam works its magic. Wood darts the ball towards the off-stump and Gill pokes hard to hand a simple catch to Stokes at first-slip. Massive blow for India within the first 30 minutes. Rajat Patidar walks in at 4.

Sriram Veera from Rajkot: A nipbacker had cut Gill into two the previous ball. This one held its line outside off and Gill , stuck at the crease, just pushed out at it and edges. Rohit has a word with Rajat Patidar