Visakhapatnam: India advanced their lead over england to 298 runs on day three of the test in the YSR ACA-VDCA Cricket Stdium here today.Stuart Broad took 2-6 to help reduce the hosts to 40-3 before Kohli - following his first-innings 167 - countered with an unbeaten 56 from 70 balls to see India safely to stumps on 98-3.
Earlier, England - resuming the day on 103-5 - were bowled out for 255, with Ben Stokes hitting 70 and Jonny Bairstow 53.The pair put on 110 for the sixth wicket, stifling an Indian attack that had ripped through the tourists' top order the previous evening.But England couldn't keep Ravichandran Ashwin (5-67) out of the game for long, with the off-spinner claiming a first Test five-for against England as India earned a 200-run lead.
England's morning started in strange fashion as Bairstow injured himself while going through his warm-ups on his way out to the middle.It obviously didn't affect him too greatly, however, as he and Stokes continued through to a century stand.Ashwin wasted India's remaining review with his first ball of the day, impulsively calling for DRS thinking he'd trapped Bairstow lbw, but it was glove, not pad, which the ball hit.
Ashwin could, however, have had Stokes out stumped on 21, but Wriddhiman Saha failed to gather the ball cleanly.From there, Stokes and Bairstow both went serenely through to their fifties, though the latter fell just before lunch, bowled by a beautiful delivery from Umesh Yadav (1-56) which reversed sharply back into the right-hander.
India took the second new ball shortly after the interval, but the seamers were wasteful, conceding 28 runs from the opening 4.4 overs.The re-introduction of spin brought the breakthrough, and the key scalp of Stokes, given out lbw in Ashwin's second over back.
Stokes called for a review, and there seemed to be an inside edge on replay, but it mattered little as a catch was claimed too at silly point.
Ravindra Jadeja (1-57) picked up his first wicket - Zafar Ansari lbw - before Ashwin wrapped up the innings, and claimed his five-for, with Broad and James Anderson trapped in front off consecutive balls, leaving Adil Rashid stranded on 32 not out.India opted not to enforce the follow-on, but struggled during the early exchanges of their second innings, with Broad claiming two wickets in a six-over spell that cost just six runs, with five maidens.
Murali Vijay (3) and Lokesh Rahul (10) both fell after England reviews; Vijay given out caught at gully from an inside edge onto his pad, and Rahul getting a faint nick through to Bairstow behind the stumps.Anderson (1-16) added the wicket of Cheteshwar Pujara (1), bowled, after a painstaking 24-ball stay at the crease, but captain Kohli came to India's rescue.He brought up his fifty, off 63 balls, in the final few overs of the day, sharing in an unbroken 58-run stand with Ajinkya Rahane (22 not Out ). (UNI)
