Drained England attack looks dead on its feet

HUW TURBERVILL AT THE KIA OVAL: Back-to-back Test matches because the modern tourists prefer not to stay here too long? Check. No wonder Jimmy Anderson and Ollie Robinson look dead on their feet

Scorecard

The Kia Oval (fourth day of five): India 191 & 466, England 290 & 77-0 - England need another 291 runs to win with 10 second-innings wickets in hand

Was this the afternoon when the farcical scheduling caught up with England?

Two rounds only of LV=Insurance County Championship matches in mid-summer? Check. Back-to-back Test matches because the modern tourists prefer not to stay here too long? Check. County pitches that see wickets tumbling to trundlers? Check.

No wonder Jimmy Anderson and Ollie Robinson looked dead on their feet.

England did well to restrict India to 59 for 3 in the morning session, but then the tourists bullied the home attack as if they’d had Popeye quantities of spinach for lunch.

Following on from his record-breaking half-century – 57 from 36 balls – in the first innings in this fourth Test at the Kia Oval, Shardul Thakur thwacked another 60 from 72. At times he made Rishabh Pant look pedestrian, which is no easy thing to do. The belligerent wicketkeeper/batsman contributed 50 from 106. He needed a score, although he should have been run out on 37 by Moeen Ali, only for a dopey bit of fielding. The duo put on exactly 100 to seemingly take the game away from England. 

Poor Anderson, 39, must rouse himself again for the fifth and final Test at Old Trafford on Friday – just three days of rest and rehab… how ridiculous. I know it’s unrealistic to hark back to the days when Tests started every second Thursday, but still. At least his home is a happy hunting ground for him – he’s taken 31 wickets at 24.29 there. He’s had a fine series – 15 wickets at 24.80, but alas we cannot overlook the contrast between his first and second-innings performances: 13 at 12.54 compared to two at 103.50.

This was Robinson’s toughest day in Test cricket so far (at least if you focus on cricket issues, not the aftermath of old tweets resurfacing). It is the 27-year-old’s fourth Test in 29 days. His record is still excellent – 28 wickets at 19.60 – but he looked tired. He has taken 12 wickets against India in the first innings at 17.66 apiece; and nine at 26.22 in the second.

His slower ball was pummelled by Thakur over midwicket, and then he nearly took the bowler’s feet off with a ferocious straight drive.

Still, the punishment hadn’t ended for England, with Jasprit Bumrah (24) and Umesh Yadav (25) playing some powerful, high-quality shots. They added 36, really rubbing salt into the wound.

Chris Woakes looked the freshest and sharpest home bowler, which is not surprising considering this is his first Test for nearly 12 months. He finished with match figures of 7 for 138.

After taking 6 for 61 at Leeds, Craig Overton found The Oval tougher, with 1 for 49 and 1 for 58. If he didn’t know bowling here on the most benign of surfaces was going to be hard, he should have asked his brother Jamie. Mark Wood will probably come in for him at Manchester.

As I started typing that the new vice-captain Moeen Ali wasn’t giving captain Joe Root what he needed – wickets and control, he had 1 for 98 to show from 22 overs, no maidens – he caught and bowled Thakur quite superbly. Earlier he dismissed Virat Kohli for the 10th time in all formats – the same as Anderson. He now has 195 Test wickets, going clear of Jim Laker’s 193 (although the latter played 18 fewer Tests – 46). Moeen’s a cricketer who produces brilliant moments. If only he could be more consistent in Test cricket.

^{James Anderson yet again had a large workload}

Of course, the hectic schedule applies to India too. They have been here a while now, when you factor in the World Test Championship final against New Zealand at the Ageas Bowl from June 18–23.

Their attack also struggled with their lines, Rory Burns and Haseeb Hameed giving England hope of an improbable win on the last day. The duo booked their passage to Australia this winter with their second significant opening stand of the series, 77, after their 135 in the first innings at Headingley. They need 291 at 3.23 an over.

Even if India have been on top (just about), the crowd seemed happy and it's been good to see The Oval back on its feet this week.

Covid hit this corporate monster so hard. Richard Gould, who left as chief executive to take on the same role at Bristol City FC, told Sky that an Oval Test was worth £40m-45m thanks to broadcast revenue, ticket sales and hospitality, and sponsorship. 

All tickets to the public have been snapped up for the fifth and final day, however, which will see a crowd of 20,000 here – not bad for a Monday. The hospitality boxes will not be full but they have been for the first four days, resulting in crowds of about 27,000.

The over-rate remains a tick on Test cricket’s back. Nine, five, 14 overs and four overs were not bowled on the first four days respectively. Players being made to play on into the intervals, run penalties and fines must all be an option now. The cricket’s been grand, though, so let’s not dwell too long on the negatives.