It wouldn’t be an understatement to say that England’s run-rate in the Lord’s Test against India was well under its usual lofty standards.
Ever since coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes joined hands in June 2022, the Englishmen’s run-scoring graph has seen more crests than troughs.
It was a different England that set out to bat against India in the third Test, though.
Stokes’ decision to bat first, too, was unusual for the team under this new regime.
Only two times have England chosen to bat first in home Tests since June 2022; the other instance being the 2023 Birmingham Test against Australia.
The change in strategy, in accordance with the conditions and the opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, bore fruit as England successfully defended its 192 on a tricky day-five Lord’s pitch.
Underrated virtue
The English batters were willing to bide their time and scrap for runs, a virtue often underrated in the modern game. The first-innings run-rate of 3.44 while amassing 387 was England’s third-slowest in home Tests in the Bazball era. The record for the most sedate English innings at home in the time period came in its second innings, where England took 62.1 overs to score 192 (3.08 rpo).
The Indian bowlers, too, were on the ball on the first day. In fact, England did not get a run for 28 deliveries in a row when Ollie Pope and Joe Root had to survive probing spells from Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in the post-lunch session.
“Baz, Baz, Bazball. Play Bazball. Come on, I want to see,” Siraj quipped at Root.
“No more entertaining cricket here, lads. Welcome back to boring Test cricket,” said skipper Shubman Gill as India looked to capitalise on England’s uncharacteristic batting approach.
The Englishmen dug deep, even as the Indians took a dig at them for their new modus operandi.
“It was a very slow day, but credit to the way India bowled. I don’t think the pitch offered loads after lunch… it was pretty placid. India held their lengths well. I think 251 for four is a good score if we can kick on,” Pope told Sky Sports at close of play on day one.
England ended up adding 136 more to its overnight total, thanks to some lower-order vigil.
Along with the 387 runs it scored, the time England had kept India in the field (112.3 overs) mattered too. A quick turnaround after the Edgbaston Test (where India bowled last) and the harsh London weather were factors to be considered. The temperature not only affected the players but also the pitch as well.
McCullum had asked for a track with “plenty of life in it” for the third Test. The Indian top-order batting long in the first innings of the first two games may have prompted the England coach to request for a surface with “a bit more pace, a bit more bounce, and maybe a little bit of sideways movement”.
While the first three days showed a dormant version of the Lord’s pitch and both teams batted rather steadily (though slowly), the demons in the wicket did come out just in time for the third and fourth innings. The scorching weather had its effect on the track as cracks opened up over time, spelling trouble for the willow-wielders.
Fine margins
The margins were fine in this game (the first-innings play literally cancelled out after a 387-387 tie). The proceedings, just like the Lord’s track, were quite quiet until then, too.
All that changed once tempers flared late on day three, as India did not appreciate England’s tactics to run down the clock. The game went on overdrive from thereon as the cut and thrust of the rivalry and the Lord’s track picked up pace from day four.
Root (40, 96b) and Stokes (33, 96b) were at the forefront of England’s batting effort in the second innings as the host huffed and puffed to 192.
This was by no means a daunting total, but scoring runs on the Lord’s track had become a lot more difficult by then. The inconsistent bounce and the pronounced seam movement off the pitch were going to be the Englishmen’s allies in the last innings.
The home team’s idea of batting patiently and asking India to chase on a deteriorating pitch would have been moot had the visitor managed to reach the sub-200 target. But it wasn’t to be as England made full use of the unpredictable nature of the 22-yard strip to seal the 22-run win.
Ravindra Jadeja’s gallant effort (61 n.o., 181b) would have made England sweat as India almost pulled off a heist after being 82 for seven at one stage.
In a twist of fate, India lost its last wicket from a delivery that Siraj defended perfectly before the ball trickled onto the stumps to dislodge a bail. The game of cricket can be cruel sometimes. For England, though, this marked the vindication of getting a positive result by playing a brand of cricket outside its comfort zone.
Stokes shedding light on England’s adaptability ahead of the third Test highlighted that his decision to bat first was not taken on a whim.
“We are not stuck in our ways about it. I want to make that clear. It’s something that’s been built up. We bowled first at Edgbaston because there were decent overhead conditions, but that soon changed; the clouds broke off and the sun came out. I’m not the Met Office, so I can’t tell what’s going to happen after 10.30 a.m.,” Stokes had revealed.
“Lord’s is meant to be really hot this week. Just because we’ve had good success at chasing down totals in the fourth innings, it doesn’t mean that that is our preference.”
“There’s a little bit of discussion around in the morning, but when I get the whites out with the blazer on, I look up to the sky more than anything. It’s not rocket science,” Stokes had said.
The Lord’s factor
Over the years, the Bazball revolution does tend to take a mellowed form while playing at the Home of Cricket. Lord’s has seen six of England’s nine slowest innings in home Tests since June 2022. This pattern of cautious run-scoring also applies to other teams also as Lord’s has the lowest average run-rate (3.61) among Test venues in England in the time period.
Perhaps the hallowed venue’s storied history is making teams play cricket the old-fashioned way… or maybe it is the novelty factor in tackling the famed Lord’s slope (it has become rather fashionable to point out the venue’s uneven nature).
The truth is England showed great character by tweaking its style according to the Lord’s pitch.
Here’s something to keep in mind ahead of the fourth Test: England’s run-rates are on a downward curve (from 4.61 rpo in its first innings at Leeds to 3.08 in its last at Lord’s) in the series.
All eyes will be on the Manchester sky now.
