Day 3 of the fifth Test between England and India belonged to the visitors. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Akash Deep started the day with a 107-run partnership, which put the Ollie Pope-led side under immense pressure. Akash, who moved to the number four as a nightwatchman, punished the England bowlers, and that might bite the hosts in the final innings of the day. He made 66 runs, while Jaiswal went on to hit his sixth Test ton.
He made 118 runs and set the tone for the middle order batters. Later, Dhruv Jurel made 34 runs, while Ravindra Jadeja went on to score his sixth 50+ score this series, which is also the most by any Indian batter in England. After the visitors lost a few quick wickets, Washington Sundar took the matter into his own hands, smacking 53 runs off 46 balls. Courtesy of his sensational knock, India posted 396 runs on the board and set a target of 374 runs.
Notably, Josh Tongue picked up a five-wicket haul and finished the series with 19 wickets to his name, which is the most by an England bowler. When it came to the chase, the openers started well, particularly Ben Duckett, who looked in sensational form. Zak Crawley took some time in the middle and was expected to sail the day, but on the final delivery of the day, Mohammed Siraj cleaned him up.
England need 324 more runs to win
Duckett made 34 runs as England made 50/1 after Day 3. They need 324 runs to win the fifth Test and if they manage to do so, the Three Lions will seal the series 3-1. It will also be England’s highest successful chase at The Oval.
However, things won’t be any easy for the hosts. They will miss the service of Ben Stokes, who is ruled out of the match due to a shoulder injury. On top of that, Chris Woakes, who is part of the playing XI, will not be batting, after suffering a hand injury in the first innings.