London, July 11 (UNI) Day 2 of the third Test between England and India at Lord’s unfolded with drama, milestones, and a fiery Jasprit Bumrah spell that jolted the English middle order. By lunch, England had reached 353/7 in 105 overs, riding on a counterattacking partnership between Jamie Smith (51*) and Brydon Carse (33*).
The morning began with Joe Root reaching a significant milestone, bringing up his 37th Test hundred—a feat that takes him past Rahul Dravid and Steve Smith in the all-time list of most Test centuries. Root got to the mark on the second ball of the day, with a streaky four off Bumrah, sparking loud cheers around Lord’s.
However, celebrations were short-lived. Bumrah, swinging the second new ball both ways, struck twice in the 87th over—first dismantling Root’s stumps for 104 (199 balls, 10 fours), and then trapping Chris Woakes caught behind on a successful review.
Ben Stokes, who had added 64 with Root overnight, was also castled by Bumrah earlier for 44, in a delivery that jagged in to uproot his off-stump, his third wicket of the morning, marking a stunning turnaround by India.
England, at one stage 251/4 at stumps on Day 1, lost three wickets for just 10 runs this morning to slip to 271/7. But the pair of Jamie Smith and Brydon Carse steadied the ship, adding a crucial 50-run stand for the 8th wicket in 72 balls. Smith, especially aggressive, reached his fifty off just 52 balls, continuing his rich vein of form after success at Edgbaston.
There were some nervy moments too—Smith was dropped by KL Rahul at second slip on 33, but he capitalised fully, stroking fluent boundaries off Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep.
With India clawing back through Bumrah’s incisive spell and England still fighting through Smith and Carse’s defiance, the Lord’s Test is finely poised as action resumes post-lunch on Day 2.
