England vs India, 3rd Test: Rating the England players

England came into the match as clear favorites having thrashed India by an innings & 159 runs in the 2nd test of the ongoing 5-Test match series. On the other hand, India was not even given a chance before the 3rd match with former England skipper Nasser Hussain even going on record to say, "Its Men against Boys."

However, India showed why they are the World No. 1 side in the world, as they thrashed England comprehensively by 209 runs, outplaying the hosts in all 3 departments, keeping the series alive at 2-1.

Let us look at which player got the highest marks and which player definitely needs to improve his performance:

#1 Alastair Cook (3/10)

Alastair Cook looked solid in the first innings till the time Ishant Sharma was brought on to bowl. He was dropped once by Pujara in the slips, however, he could not make full use of it and was caught behind two balls later scoring only 29 runs. First innings also saw him take a blinder to get rid of Ajinkya Rahane, so definitely a bonus point there.

In the second innings, however, he loses his bonus point for dropping a simple catch of Shikhar Dhawan at first slip. With the bat as well, his performance was disappointing; getting out in the 3rd over of day 4 by Ishant Sharma after scoring 17 runs off 39 deliveries.

#2 Keaton Jennings (2.5/10)

England v India: Specsavers 3rd Test - Day Four

Jennings was starting to look comfortable in the first innings till the time he decided to flirt with a Bumrah delivery he should have easily left alone. He scored 20 runs off 32 balls but failed to convert yet another start into a big knock. He was also guilty of dropping a simple catch of Hardik Pandya standing in the third slip.

In the second inning, Jenning was the first to go, getting out in the very first over of Day 4 to Ishant Sharma after scoring 13 runs off 31 balls. Thus, his place might be in danger in the next match.

#3 Joe Root (2/10)

Root had a tough time in the first innings with a lot of edges, misses, lbw appeals and finally getting out caught by KL Rahul at 2nd slip off Hardik Pandya. He did score 16 runs, but the English skipper couldn't deliver when his team wanted him to.

In the second innings as well, it always seemed a matter of time before Root would have been dismissed. He looked very nervy and finally got out to a delivery which he is quite able to deal with in normal circumstances. Root scored 13 off 40 balls, just not enough when you are trying to save a test match.

#4 Ollie Pope (2/10)

The 20-year old, Pope looked completely at ease barring one or two deliveries in his entire first innings in which he faced 22 deliveries scoring 10 runs. He must be considering himself quite unlucky, being strangled down the leg in an attempt to glance the ball off his hips.

In the second innings, Pope did try to put up a fight, but some clever bowling by Shami combining with Kohli's brilliance in the slip just didn't let it happen. He scored 16 runs off 39 balls.

#5 Jonny Bairstow (1.5/10)

Another English player who got hit by the storm named Hardik Pandya in the first innings. Bairstow did the hard part facing 41 deliveries for his 15 runs, but failed to rescue his team in the crunch situation.

He injured his finger while keeping in the second innings which had put his participation in England's second innings in doubt. Albeit Bairstow did come out to bat, he couldn't put up any resistance getting all cleaned up on the very first delivery he faced.

#6 Ben Stokes (6/10)

Stokes' inclusion in the playing XI was quite controversial in itself having replaced an in-form Sam Curran. But he failed to live up to his billing with either ball or bat in the first innings. He went wicketless in the 15 overs he bowled and gave away 54 runs. With the bat too, he could only manage 10 runs before getting caught at slips.

However, he managed to pick up 2 wickets in the second innings and also put up a strong resistance with the bat. He faced 187 balls for his 62 runs before being caught at 2nd slip by KL Rahul.

#7 Jos Buttler (7.5/10)

Termed as limited overs specialist, Jos Buttler has shown consistently that he can play red ball cricket with equal brilliance. He was the lone spark in an otherwise disappointing 1st innings performance by the English side scoring a quickfire 39 runs off 32 balls. If not for Buttler's counter-attack, England would not have been able to avoid the follow-on.

In the 2nd innings as well, Buttler was the one who put up a strong resistance to push the match into the 5th day. Although he was dropped early in his innings, but credit must be given to him to fight it out and score his maiden Test ton (106 runs 176balls). He didn't put a foot wrong after that reprieve before getting out lbw, trying to leave a ball which nipped in sharply.

Dropping Pujara, however, in the second innings did cost his side dearly as Pujara went to score 72 runs.

#8 Chris Woakes (4.5/10)

England v India: Specsavers 3rd Test - Day Two

Man of the match in the previous game, Chris Woakes sent early jitters in the Indian camp when he removed the top 3 in quick succession and finished the innings with respectable figures of 20-2-75-3. However, he couldn't bail out his team out of pressure with the bat, getting out after scoring 8 runs to a bouncer from Hardik Pandya, which he later revealed to be a clear plan.

In the second innings, Woakes wasn't as effective as he was in the first innings and could manage only 1 wicket of a set Virat Kohli (who had just reached his hundred). He disappointed with the bat again in the second innings, being bounced out twice in the match, this time by Jasprit Bumrah for 4 runs.

#9 Adil Rashid (4.5/10)

England v India: Specsavers 3rd Test - Day Five

Adil Rashid was very ineffective with the ball in the first innings where he was neither able to contain the Indian batsmen nor was he able to create any wicket taking chances. Albeit, he did pick Virat Kohli's wicket, who had a momentary loss of concentration batting at 97. With the bat too, he couldn't provide any support to Jos Buttler getting out for 5 runs within 5 deliveries he faced.

However, his performance in the second innings was much better both with the ball and the bat. He was the pick of the bowlers in an otherwise disappointing performance with the figures of 27-2-101-3. Also, with the bat, he put up a strong resistance and remained not out at 33 after facing 64 deliveries.

#10 Stuart Broad (4/10)

Stuart Broad bowled reasonably well in the first innings, removing India's lower middle order, first by dismissing Rahane who had scored 81 runs by then and later removing Pant & Ashwin in quick succession. However, he also couldn't support Jos Buttler and was dismissed for a duck.

In the second innings, he couldn't make good use of the conditions and went wicketless in the 16 overs he bowled giving away 60 runs at an economy of 3.75. However, he tried reducing the deficit of loss as he scored 20 runs off 29 deliveries before being caught at second slip by KL Rahul.

#11 James Anderson (3.5/10)

Overcast conditions, batsmen low on confidence; the stage was set for the English legend to put in another masterful spell of swing bowling. However, Indian batsmen put it in a spirited performance and made Anderson work hard for his wickets. He picked up 3 wickets in the first innings out of which two were No. 10 & 11 in Mohammed Shami & Jasprit Bumrah, the third one being Hardik Pandya.

In the second innings as well he could only manage one wicket of Rishabh Pant and was largely kept at bay by the Indian batsmen who played him with a lot of caution scoring only at 2.50 runs per over.

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Edited by Kumud Ranjan