ECB’s ‘successful track record in hosting recent finals’ cited as reason for keeping showcase event in country

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jul-2025

England has been confirmed as the host of the next three World Test Championship finals – in 2027, 2029 and 2031 – following the country’s successful staging of the first three such events since 2021.The decision, which had been on the cards since Lord’s played host to South Africa’s five-wicket victory over Australia in the third WTC final last month, was ratified at the ICC’s annual conference in Singapore this week.Despite some speculation that the contest could be set for a relocation to India from 2027 onwards, the ICC cited the ECB’s “successful track record in hosting recent finals” in confirming its decision.Richard Gould, the ECB chief executive, said: “We are absolutely delighted that England and Wales has been chosen to host the next three ICC World Test Championship Finals. It’s a testament to the passion that fans in this country have for this treasured format of the game and the willingness of supporters from around the world to travel here for these games. Hosting these finals is a privilege, and we look forward to working with the ICC to build on the success of the previous editions.”The June window, early in the English summer, remains the ICC’s favoured time of year for staging the final, in the aftermath of the IPL and at a time of year when few other international fixtures are scheduled at that time of year.Furthermore, as was demonstrated at Lord’s last month, England’s ability to sell out venues for neutral fixtures remains unrivalled across the world game. This was also the case when the Kia Oval hosted Australia’s victory over India in 2023, and even at the inaugural event in 2021, which was staged in biosecure circumstances at the Hampshire Bowl with limited access for India’s and New Zealand’s fans.Speaking last month about the prospect of hosting the next three events, Gould told ESPNcricinfo: “We don’t think that we’ve got any absolute right to be the continual host of the WTC [final], but there are advantages to having it here.”Irrespective of who gets into the final, we will sell it out… We’re probably the only member nation within the ICC that could deliver that. We recognise that perhaps others would like to take it around the world at some point… But the worry is if you move it, end up with two neutral teams, and don’t get a crowd, the whole thing could devalue and deflate pretty quickly.”The atmosphere at Lord’s was noted at the last WTC final, with the ICC’s chair, Jay Shah visibly enthused by the sense of occasion that England’s most famous venue afforded the event.However, ESPNcricinfo understands that no decision has yet been made as to whether Lord’s will remain the preferred host for the final going forward.

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O Botafogo voltou a vencer ao derrotar o Fluminense no Maracanã e disparou mais uma vez na liderança do Brasileirão. Além disso, todos os adversários que ainda sonhavam com o título tropeçaram, como Red Bull Bragantino, Grêmio, Palmeiras e Flamengo. Na parte inferior da classificação, a rodada foi muito boa para o Santos. Após o término da 26ª rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro, o Lance! atualiza as chances de cada time conquistar o título, uma vaga na Libertadores, na Sul-Americana ou de ser rebaixado na competição.

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+ Tem promoção exclusiva de boas-vindas pra você! Aposte a partir de R$10 e receba até R$200 de bônus na Lance! Betting

Ninguém tem mais motivos para sorrir do que o torcedor botafoguense. Depois de quatro rodadas sem vencer, o Botafogo derrotou o rival Fluminense no Maracanã, no primeiro jogo após a demissão do técnico Bruno Lage. Junto a isso, as derrotas de Grêmio (contra o Internacional) e Palmeiras (para o Santos) e os empates de Flamengo (diante do Corinthians) e Red Bull Bragantino (frente o Athletico) ajudaram o Glorioso a disparar mais uma vez. Agora, o Alvinegro Carioca tem 87,1% de chances de ser campeão.

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Na parte debaixo da tabela, o Santos respirou na luta para fugir do rebaixamento. A vitória sobre o Palmeiras levou o Peixe à 14ª colocação e aos 21,1% de chances de cair, uma queda em relação aos 34,9% na rodada anterior. Quem pode ter se complicado é o Vasco, que empatou com o São Paulo em casa e foi a 47,8% de probabilidade de queda, um salto comparado aos 34,5% da última semana.

+ Veja a classificação e simule os resultados do Brasileirão

Os cálculos foram feitos por um grupo de professores do Departamento de Estatística da UFMG (Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais), que realiza este trabalho desde 2005. Veja a seguir as chances de cada time no Brasileirão.

Confira as chances do seu time no Brasileirão 2023

Somerset suffer upset against Glamorgan thanks to allround batting and key bowling display

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay04-Jul-2025Ned Leonard claimed five wickets against his former county as Glamorgan shocked South Group leaders Somerset with a nail-biting two-run Vitality Blast win at Taunton.The visitors posted 176 for six after losing the toss, Dan Douthwaite top-scoring with 56 off 32 balls, with three fours and four sixes, while Colin Ingram hit 55 from 33 deliveries. Matt Henry finished with two for 15 from four overs.In reply, Somerset fell just short on 174 for nine, Will Smeed making 72 off 49 balls and Leonard claiming five for 25. It was only Glamorgan’s fifth victory in 20 Blast visits to Taunton.Henry’s first two overs of the match saw Will Smale caught by Craig Overton over his shoulder at mid-on and Alex Horton top-edge a pull shot to Meredith at fine leg to make it 22 for two.Ben Kellaway hit successive boundaries off Overton in the fifth over and the end of the power play saw Glamorgan 42 for two. That became 66 for three when left-arm spinner Lewis Goldsworthy had Kiran Carlson, on 14, brilliantly caught by the diving Tom Abell at deep mid-wicket.When Kellaway, who had moved to 28, top-edged an attempted reverse sweep off Goldsworthy to Tom Kohler-Cadmore at short third-man, Glamorgan were struggling on 75 for four in the 11th over.It was 94 for five when Riley Meredith dismissed Asa Tribe, caught behind cutting, but the Australian’s next over saw Douthwaite, on two, dropped by wicketkeeper Tom Banton and it proved a costly error.Ingram moved to a powerful 31-ball half-century with a six off Meredith. Ben Green struck a big blow for Somerset when having the South African caught at short third-man off a top edge with the total on 143 in the 18th over.Douthwaite smacked Lewis Gregory for 4,4,6 at the start of the 19th over and another six took him to fifty off 29 balls. He was run out off the final delivery of the innings, having cleared the ropes again off Meredith.Somerset had reached 25 off 3.5 overs when Banton was caught at mid-off miscuing a delivery from Leonard, who followed up by bowling Kohler-Cadmore behind his legs.The hosts had posted 41 for two at the end of the power play and were in some bother when Tom Abell fell for a duck, superbly caught by Douthwaite off his own bowling to make it 44 for three. Sean Dickson and Smeed lifted the tempo with sixes off Kellaway and at the halfway point in their innings Somerset were 77 for three, needing exactly 100.Dickson had made 27 off 17 balls when top-edging a slog sweep off Andy Gorvin to make it 97 for four after 12 overs. Smeed moved to a 35-ball fifty, but Gregory fell quickly to Leonard and at 100 for five the home side were in a deepening hole.The target became 55 off five overs and then 35 off three as Green and Smeed produced some clean hitting against tight Glamorgan bowling. Green hit a straight six of Jamie McIlroy, who quickly responded by having Smeed caught at wide long-off.Leonard then had Green caught off a skyer and Craig Overton taken at deep mid-wicket to complete his five-for and 16 off the final over, bowled by Douthwaite, proved just too many for Somerset.

England came to Lord’s looking for six wickets. They bagged four of them before lunch in an inspired morning’s play where their captain Ben Stokes and their returning talismanic fast bowler Jofra Archer brought quality, intensity and fire to proceedings.India were in the mire early when Rishabh Pant, hampered by the injured finger on his left hand, fell on the third over of the day. Three overs later, Stokes got one to nip down the slope at the Nursery end to trap KL Rahul lbw. Stokes bowled a nine-over spell this morning, constantly threatening everyone who made the mistake of standing 22 yards away. This time, the England coaching staff weren’t interfering with his plans. They just let him do his thing.Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Reddy got together with the score at 82 for 7. India’s hopes looked quite dire at the time, but a packed crowd, with a loud Indian contingent cheered them on with every block, every leave, every run scored. Eventually the ball started to lose its hardness and batting became slightly easier. There were 12 false shots leading to the three wickets in the first hour. But only eight in the second.Just as it looked like India would go to the break with their last two recognised batters intact, Chris Woakes gave them a different challenge. Swing instead of seam. And eventually he was able to prise Reddy out for 13 off 53. There remained a fair bit of needle through the morning session with Archer giving Pant a send-off, Stokes and Reddy having a fairly amiable chat at the end of overs and Brydon Carse and Jadeja actually colliding with each other.England were on point with their fielding as well, spurred on by Stokes who was loath to let the intensity drop. Archer took a fine one-handed catch, diving to his right to get rid of Washington Sundar.

علق حمزة عبد الكريم مهاجم منتخب مصر للناشئين على الهزيمة أمام إنجلترا في المباراة التي جمعت بينهما أمس الإثنين ضمن لقاءات بطولة كأس العالم تحت 17 عامًا.

وكان منتخب مصر قد خسر أمام إنجلترا بنتيجة 3-0، في مباراة الجولة الثالثة والأخيرة من مواجهات المجموعة الخامسة لمنافسات كأس العالم تحت 17 عامًا المقامة في قطر. واستطاع منتخب مصر، حسم التأهل إلى دور الـ 32 من كأس العالم للناشئين، بعد احتلاله المركز الثالث في مجموعته الخامسة، ليتأهل ضمن أفضل 8 منتخبات احتلت المركز الثالث للمجموعات الـ 12.

وقال حمزة عبد الكريم في تصريحات تلفزيونية عبر قناة النهار: “الحمد لله على التأهل، ويجب أن نتعلم من هذه المباراة أنه لا توجد مباراة سهلة، ويجب أن نستعد جيدًا للمواجهات المقبلة ونكون في كامل التركيز”.

وأكمل: “كان هدفنا الفوز على إنجلترا، ولكن من الطبيعي عندما تضمن التأهل ألا تلعب بنفس الجدية في اللقاء”.

طالع | أحمد الكاس يعلق على الخسارة أمام إنجلترا.. ويؤكد: هدفنا الوصول لأبعد نقطة في كأس العالم للناشئين

بينما أوضح زميله بلال عطية، قائلاً: “لم نكن في أفضل حالاتنا بالشوط الأول، لكن في الشوط الثاني كنا أفضل بكثير، وسنصحح أخطاءنا ولن نقف عندها أو نستسلم، سنركز على المواجهة المقبلة، وهدفنا الوصول لأبعد نقطة في البطولة وإسعاد الشعب المصري”.

وعلق عمر عبد العزيز حارس المرمى: “قصرنا في بعض الأمور، ونعد بأن القادم سيكون أفضل وسنكون على قدر المسؤولية، منتخب إنجلترا اسم كبير، ومنتخب مصر كذلك، ونحن لا نخشى مواجهة أي فريق”.

Bangladesh brushed aside Pakistan in a seven-wicket win in the first T20I in Dhaka. Bangladesh’s bowlers and fielders did the main damage when they bowled out Pakistan, for the first time in T20Is.Parvez Hossain Emon struck an unbeaten 56 in the chase, slamming five sixes and three fours in his 39-ball effort. It helped Bangladesh to complete the chase in 15.3 overs.Pakistan were already on the backfoot when they were put to bat. Taskin Ahmed took three wickets while the fielders effected three run-outs. Mustafizur Rahman bowled Bangladesh’s cheapest four-over spell in T20Is, conceding just six runs. It was an all-round bowling effort from the home side, though it got off to an iffy start.

Bangladesh get lucky

Pakistan’s batting collapse actually started after a dropped catch. Taskin spilled an easy chance at short fine leg after Fakhar had top edged a slog sweep in the first over. Taskin’s guilt was short lived as he removed Saim Ayub in the next over, caught at long leg.Bangladesh’s luck got better in the third over with Mohammad Haris, who struck a century in the last encounter between the two sides, depositing Mahedi Hasan’s long-hop into Shamim Hossain’s lap at deep midwicket. On hindsight it was a careless shot, targeting the longer of the two boundaries, with two men patrolling the fence.

Fakhar caught in run outs

Pakistan’s hard press despite the two early wickets backfired. Tanzim Hasan bowled a superb first over to Salman Agha, who finished up mistiming a scoop to wicketkeeper Litton Das. Bangladesh’s dot-ball pressure resulted in Mohammad Nawaz’s run-out in the eighth over, when Fakhar point-blank refused to take the risky single towards short midwicket. Fakhar was then run-out himself, when Khushdil Shah refused him a second run in the 12th over. Fakhar slipped in the middle of the pitch while turning, with Litton whipping off the bails.Fakhar Zaman top-scored for Pakistan with 44 off 34 balls•AFP/Getty Images

Fizz, Taskin close out innings

Mustafizur removed Khushdil who had struck a six and a four in his 17 off 23 balls. He could have had a wicket the next ball but captain Litton wasn’t convinced with the lbw appeal against Faheem Ashraf. Replays showed three reds.Mustafizur remained undeterred, finishing with figures of 2 for 6 from his four overs. It is the fewest runs conceded by a Bangladeshi bowler in a completed four-over spell in a T20I.Pakistan then lost three wickets in three balls in the final over. Taskin took two while there was a third run-out as the visitors were bowled out for 110.

Bangladesh shrug off early wickets

Bangladesh’s 111-run chase began poorly when Tanzid Hasan fell to a catch at mid-on in the first over. It gave left-arm fast bowler Salman Mirza his first wicket on T20I debut. He added a second when Khushdil took an excellent catch slip, off Litton’s thick outside edge.Pakistan’s use of Ayub to bowl the next over was perplexing but Bangladesh didn’t mind. Parvez launched him high into the midwicket stands for the first six, followed by Towhid Hridoy slamming him over long-on for another six. In the next over, Parvez blazed Mirza back over his head with a one-handed follow-through that looked gorgeous.

Parvez puts finishing touches

Pakistan didn’t help themselves when they dropped Hridoy on 12 and 30. In the sixth over, Abrar Ahmed couldn’t hold on to a tough chance at deep third, running in but spilling the chance. Then it was wicketkeeper Haris who dropped Hridoy off Abrar in the ninth over.Parvez was nonchalant at the other end. He pasted Abrar and Nawaz for two more sixes in the 11th and 12th overs, before Abbas Afridi removed Hridoy for 36. Jaker Ali struck two fours in his first four balls, before Parvez laid into Ashraf. He flat-batted one over mid-off before whipping his fifth six, which took him to his fifty. Parvez finished the over with another flat-batted strike, this time over mid-on.It left Bangladesh just six runs to win in the last six overs. Haris dropped Parvez again, on 55, before Jaker struck a superb pull shot to complete the win with 27 balls to spare.

Going head-to-head with Chelsea in the transfer market, Aston Villa have now reportedly set their sights on signing one of the “most promising” defenders that Ligue 1 has to offer.

Emery not "surprised" by Go Ahead Eagles defeat

Whilst the rest of the Premier League may have watched on in shock as Go Ahead Eagles defeated Aston Villa in the Europa League on Thursday, Unai Emery admitted that the 2-1 loss did not “surprise” him.

The Spaniard initially saw his side race into the lead courtesy of one of their most expensive signings, Evann Guessand, before goals from Mathis Suray and Mats Deijl turned the game on its head in dramatic fashion. Emiliano Buendia did have the chance to level things up from the spot, but only compiled Villa’s misery by missing his penalty.

Having his say on the result, Emery said: “It was not a surprise to lose for me and the players because we are having here our experiences playing in Europe and playing away. Every year we had one defeat like that. Two years ago, Legia Warsaw, last year, Brugge, and this year, yesterday.

“Of course, still matches to play, and I want to learn. For me, yesterday, everything happened, for us, is learning. Learning, and as well reminding ourselves the experiences we had in some similar circumstances.

“Why? Because of course we were favourites and of course we dominated and of course we had more chances, but even like that, you can lose. In Europa League we are being consistent, even yesterday, losing, we are being consistent.”

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Performing well on the European stage will be the key for Aston Villa if they want to avoid further PSR problems and then attract some of the most promising talents around. Advancing in the Europa League would, for example, do them no harm in the race to beat Chelsea to an impressive Ligue 1 defender.

Aston Villa set sights on Guela Doue

According to Pete O’Rourke, Aston Villa are now eyeing a move to sign Guela Doue from Strasbourg, but face competition from Chelsea, who are looking to put Todd Boehly’s links to good use once again, with Strasbourg under BlueCo ownership.

If there were any doubts about Doue’s potential, then they should have been put to bed against PSG last weekend. The right-back got an assist as Strasbourg shocked the European champions by racing into a 3-1 lead before eventually drawing 3-3 at the Parc des Princes.

At just 23 years old, there’s still plenty to come from Doue and that plenty could come at Villa Park in the near future.

Just when Rangers supporters thought this season couldn’t get any worse for the Ibrox outfit, well it can.

On Thursday night, Russell Martin’s Gers were beaten 2-1 in a Europa League clash at Liebenauer Stadium.

Austrian champions Sturm Graz scored twice in the first half, both times thanks to some absolutely horrendous defending that left Ally McCoist on commentary speechless, while Djeidi Gassama did lash one home immediately after half time, but an equaliser was not forthcoming.

Having lost 1-0 at home to Genk last Thursday, the Light Blues have now started a UEFA Cup or Europa League group stage with back-to-back defeats for the very first time, while Martin’s team have in fact lost five successive European fixtures, conceding 14 goals and scoring only three.

Considering he has won only five matches in charge across all competitions, losing six, supporters wanted the manager gone weeks ago, but was starting Rangers’ summer flop a sackable offence in of itself?

Rangers' continued defensive issues

Credit where credit’s due, this fact comes from Rory Hamilton during his commentary on TNT Sports.

Rangers’ last clean sheet away from home came against Ross County in Dingwall on 8 December, 299 days ago and counting, a streak of 22 matches across all competitions, which equals a club record set in 1897 when Queen Victoria was still on the throne.

Failure to keep a shutout against Falkirk on Sunday would break that 128-year-old record.

Goalkeeper Jack Butland was unceremoniously dropped by interim manager Barry Ferguson last season, but has been Martin’s undisputed number one since his appointment, albeit the England international may feel he should have kept out Tomi Horvat’s opener, a shot that was pretty much straight at him, but squirmed under his body and in.

In fairness, he does have a completely chaotic defence in front of him, with deadline day signing Derek Cornelius wondering what he did to deserve landing on this sinking ship, while 19-year-old Jayden Meghoma, who was hooked at half time in Austria, is not enjoying his time in Glasgow so far much either.

With games against Brann, Roma, Braga, Ferencváros, Ludogorets Razgrad and Porto to come in this Europa League campaign, if Rangers continue to defend the way that they are, they will be crashing out in the league phase, having finished up in eighth place as recently as last season.

However, Martin has issues at the other end of the park too, making it bewildering as to why he chose the centre-forward he did.

Rangers striker yet to impress

When 49ers Enterprises completed their takeover of Rangers in the summer, they pledged to invest around £20m into the club, but how much of that has been wasted on Youssef Chermiti?

​​​​​

The Portuguese under-21 international joined the club from Everton on deadline day for a reported fee of £8m, potentially rising to £10m with add-ons.

The Gers’ previous transfer record in the post-liquidation era is the £7.5m paid to Liverpool to secure Ryan Kent’s signature, following an impressive loan spell, with Chermiti’s fee thereby second only to the £12m splurged on Tore André Flo in 2000.

The 21-year-old led the line in Graz, as he did for the visit of Genk a week earlier, but did not impress, as the table below documents.

Shots on target

3

2nd

Hit woodwork

1

1st

xG

0.49

3rd

Duels contested

11

5th

Duels won

5

10th

Touches

24

22nd

Sofascore rating

6

32nd

As the table notes, despite attempting four shots, of which three were on target, Chermiti was not taking these from particularly good positions, hence why his expected goals figure was as low as 0.49, an average of only 0.12 per shot.

He also lost possession eight times, as well as winning less than 50% of his duels, registering a miserly 24 touches, which is fewer than goalkeeper Jack Butland (31), as well as six less than Oliver Antman, who was hooked at half-time.

During commentary for TNT Sport, McCoist outlined his reservations about the signing, saying that he hopes that Chermiti will score 200 or even 300 goals for Rangers, and he would probably have to if he’s to justify the sky-high price-tag.

Well, first and foremost, just one goal would be a start!

He did not score a single goal in two seasons at Everton, albeit he made just 24 appearances, totalling 295 for the Toffees, meaning his last senior goal came for Sporting against Paços de Ferreira on 7 May 2023.

That same day, Todd Cantwell scored the only goal as Michael Beale’s Rangers beat Barry Robson’s Aberdeen 1-0 at Ibrox, while Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic rubber-stamped the title at Tynecastle simultaneously; a lot has changed all round!

When you’ve got a proven reliable goalscorer sat on the bench in Bojan Miovski, who was introduced at half time when it was already too late, Martin’s decision to start Chermiti, when his job is on the line, is frankly baffling.

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A “wonderful” midfielder has now made a significant decision regarding a potential move to Manchester United in the January transfer window.

Man Utd need long-term replacement for Bruno

Bruno Fernandes has continued to be a talismanic figure for the Red Devils, captaining impressively and maturing into a more experienced head alongside younger teammates.

The Portuguese is now 31 years of age, however, and while his durability and lack of injury problems means he should be able to go on for plenty more years, United have to make sure they have a plan in place to find a successor eventually.

Bruno now has less than two years remaining on his current Red Devils deal, with Fabrizio Romano providing an update about a potential release clause.

Man Utd target makes big transfer call

According to The Mirror, Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jobe Bellingham has decided against joining Manchester United in January, having “no interest” in heading to Old Trafford on loan for the time being.

The Englishman only joined the Bundesliga side in a £27m move in the summer window, but he has struggled for playing time, being linked with a move away in the process.

Bellingham is the type of player who United should be viewing as a possible Bruno replacement one day, albeit in a slightly more disciplined midfield role, with the 20-year-old following in the footsteps of his brother Jude by heading to Dortmund in the summer.

He starred for Sunderland last season, playing an important role in them sealing promotion from the Championship to the Premier League, and not only has he been compared to Frank Lampard by former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel, but he is loved by his teammates.

“Listen, Jobe’s a wonderful player. I’m one of his biggest fans, more than his dad. Don’t tell him that. I think Jobe’s wonderful,” Sunderland’s Luke O’Nien said last season.

“He’s a wonderful addition. He even comes in at half-time to give his perspective. That’s how much he’s grown into the game. Even though he’s not playing, he’s in at half-time. We’re asking for his perspective on the game because he’s a leader in our team.”

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Bellingham is still so young that United shouldn’t consider this the end of the saga, and if he manages to get back on track and reaches his potential in the coming years, he needs to be viewed as a fantastic midfield option, bringing the box-to-box quality that Bruno does.

Washington picked up two wickets early in the session but Root and Stokes drove back home the advantage

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2025

Joe Root brought up his 38th Test hundred•Associated Press

Tea Joe Root’s 38th Test century took him up to second on the all-time Test run-scorer’s list. And in typical Root fashion, his 121 and counting has raised England to a dominant position in this fourth Test, leading India by 75 in the first innings at tea on day three.Upon moving to 31, Root snuck past Rahul Dravid (13,288) and Jacques Kallis (13,289), bumping the latter off the podium to join Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting. And, four minutes before the end of the second session, he walked down to open the face for a single down to third to move to 120, knocking Ponting (13,378) down a peg, who sung his praises on Sky as part of their commentary team upon being leapfrogged.Related

Root surpasses Ponting to become the second-highest run-getter in Tests

Root did little more than raise a thumb to his skipper, Ben Stokes, with whom he has so far shared an 84-run stand. They had earlier embraced for his hundred after tickling his 178th delivery around the corner for his 12th boundary around, one which took him level with Kumar Sangakkara’s tally of 38, level fourth on the all-time centuries list. It is also his 12th century against India, the most of any player, now ahead of Steve Smith.

He had batted for most of the day with Ollie Pope, sharing in a stand of 144 which was ended seven balls after lunch. It was Pope first after the break, edging Washington Sundar to first slip. And Washington had his second four overs later when he hoodwinked an advancing Harry Brook on the outside edge to have him stumped.It was a passage out of kilter with an otherwise listless performance from India in the field. They missed a chance to remove Root on 22 with a botched attempt at a run out, and they were unlucky when Root, on 98, inadvertently diverted a ball just past his leg stump after it caught his thigh guard.Otherwise, their lack of energy, partly due to being run-ragged by England’s penchant for quick singles, was compounded when Jasprit Bumrah was only able to bowl one over with the second new ball before having to leave the field with an unknown injury. Mohammed Siraj, lionhearted throughout, limped off after the 99th over to leave Shubman Gill with big headache heading into the final session.