3rd Test: Ashwin, Jurel take India to 388/7 at lunch after losing Jadeja & Kuldeep

Rajkot, Feb 16 (IANS) Ravichandran Ashwin and debutant wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel take India 388/7 at lunch after losing overnight batters Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav in the first session of day two’s play in the third Test against England at the Niranjan Shah Stadium on Friday.

It was a slow session for India, who added only 62 runs in the first session, 57 of which came from the unbroken partnership for the eighth wicket between Ashwin and Jurel, to reach 388/7 in 113 overs at lunch. While Jurel is 31 not out off 71 balls, Ashwin is unbeaten on 25 off 64 deliveries.

Resuming from 331/7, James Anderson struck in the fourth over of the session after getting a faint edge of night watchman Kuldeep's bat to wicketkeeper Ben Foakes. In the next over, Jadeja chipped a tame drive straight back to part-time off-spinner Joe Root, falling for 112.

With two new fresh batters, England went to Mark Wood’s thunderbolts, and Ashwin got off the mark with a beautiful punch through cover for four. He tried to bounce out Jurel, who arched back and ramped over slips for six.

Ashwin continued to hit lovely drives and cuts for boundaries, while Jurel looked solid and cleverly glanced and drove in the gap to get his runs, as making 400+ now looks like a realistic target for India.

The only blip for India though was Ashwin running into the danger area while facing Rehan Ahmed in the 102nd over, which led to on-field umpire Joel Wilson fining India with a five-run penalty. Due to this, England will begin their first innings from 5/0.

On day one, Before the final ball of the 80th over, Ravindra Jadeja ran on the danger area and was given an official warning from the umpires. India was previously on the receiving end of the five-run penalty back in 2016 against New Zealand in Indore, where Jadeja was also involved on that occasion.

Brief Scores: India 388/7 in 113 overs (Rohit Sharma 131, Ravindra Jadeja 112; Mark Wood 3-95, James Anderson 1-61) against England