England lay foundation for victory charge against India
England were 117-0 at lunch at Headingley on Tuesday, needing a further 254 runs to reach a target of 371, with Crawley 42 not out and Duckett unbeaten on 64.
The closest India came to separating the pair was just before the interval when Bumrah, in his second spell, dropped an exceptionally tough low, left-handed caught and bowled chance from Crawley's drive.
If England achieve their target, it will be just behind their record fourth-innings chase of 378 against India at Edgbaston three years ago.
And it would be the second-highest chase in a Test at Headingley, surpassing their 362-9 against Australia in 2019 when current captain Ben Stokes' unbeaten century secured a stunning one-wicket Ashes win.
England resumed on 21-0 -- needing exactly 350 more runs to go 1-0 up in this five-match series.
Crawley (12 not out) and Duckett (nine not out) were confronted with the daunting task of facing Bumrah, the world's top-ranked Test bowler and fresh from a five-wicket haul in the first innings, in overcast conditions.
It was not long before Bumrah got a ball to jag sharply past the outside edge of Duckett's bat.
But India squandered a review when Mohammed Siraj tried to overturn an lbw verdict in favour of Crawley, on 21, when replays indicated the ball would have missed leg stump.
The openers managed just 42 runs in Tuesday's first 12 overs -- a relatively sedate run-rate in England's aggressive 'Bazball' era.
But they denied India a breakthrough in a session where they scored 96 runs in 24 overs.
England cashed in on the other members of the India attack as left-hander Duckett drove and pulled Prasidh Krishna for two boundaries on his way to a 66-ball fifty including eight fours.
India's Rishabh Pant had become only the second wicketkeeper to score two hundreds in a Test when he made 118 on Sunday to follow his first-innings 134.
But, despite five individual centuries in this match, India would have been in an even stronger position had they not suffered collapses of 7-41 and 6-31 at the back end of each innings.
© 2025 AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
7 hours ago
- France 24
England lay foundation for victory charge against India
England were 117-0 at lunch at Headingley on Tuesday, needing a further 254 runs to reach a target of 371, with Crawley 42 not out and Duckett unbeaten on 64. The closest India came to separating the pair was just before the interval when Bumrah, in his second spell, dropped an exceptionally tough low, left-handed caught and bowled chance from Crawley's drive. If England achieve their target, it will be just behind their record fourth-innings chase of 378 against India at Edgbaston three years ago. And it would be the second-highest chase in a Test at Headingley, surpassing their 362-9 against Australia in 2019 when current captain Ben Stokes' unbeaten century secured a stunning one-wicket Ashes win. England resumed on 21-0 -- needing exactly 350 more runs to go 1-0 up in this five-match series. Crawley (12 not out) and Duckett (nine not out) were confronted with the daunting task of facing Bumrah, the world's top-ranked Test bowler and fresh from a five-wicket haul in the first innings, in overcast conditions. It was not long before Bumrah got a ball to jag sharply past the outside edge of Duckett's bat. But India squandered a review when Mohammed Siraj tried to overturn an lbw verdict in favour of Crawley, on 21, when replays indicated the ball would have missed leg stump. The openers managed just 42 runs in Tuesday's first 12 overs -- a relatively sedate run-rate in England's aggressive 'Bazball' era. But they denied India a breakthrough in a session where they scored 96 runs in 24 overs. England cashed in on the other members of the India attack as left-hander Duckett drove and pulled Prasidh Krishna for two boundaries on his way to a 66-ball fifty including eight fours. India's Rishabh Pant had become only the second wicketkeeper to score two hundreds in a Test when he made 118 on Sunday to follow his first-innings 134. But, despite five individual centuries in this match, India would have been in an even stronger position had they not suffered collapses of 7-41 and 6-31 at the back end of each innings. © 2025 AFP
France 24
11 hours ago
- France 24
It will be 'big and punchy': Athletics chief Coe looks to future
The 68-year-old Englishman has shrugged off the disappointment of finishing third in the International Olympic Committee presidential election in March, telling AFP he is "not one for rear view mirrors." "Concede and move on," he adds. Move on he certainly has. The old brio, dynamism and charm are all to the fore as he addresses the issues that will dominate the final leg of a 12-year tenure that -- like his Olympic gold medal-winning track career -- has never been dull. The World Championships arrive in September in Tokyo -- "a massive moment", Coe says, not least because there will be spectators unlike at the Covid-delayed 2020 Summer Olympics in the same stadium. "Everybody gets the emotional impact" of that, he added. Then attention switches to the World Athletics Ultimate Team Championship, slated for September 11-13, 2026, in Budapest -- the city which hosted the 2023 world championships. Each session will last three hours and athletes will represent both themselves and their national teams, wearing national kit. "Next year is unashamedly aimed at TV," Coe told AFP in an interview following Friday's Paris Diamond League meet. "It's unashamedly aimed at unlocking new audiences. "So we go from '24 where we have a big global audience in the Olympic Games to '25 which are world championships. "2026 now gives us, in September, an opportunity for the world to remember we're big and punchy and still there." Another former track great, Michael Johnson, had wanted to make just such an impact with his Grand Slam series this year. However, it failed to sparkle and the fourth and final stop in Los Angeles was cancelled. Coe says just as World Athletics learn from their events, so will Grand Slam. "We want to be enablers. I'm not the 'computer says no' federation," said Coe. "We want to encourage fresh thinking and fresh income into this sport. "I've been involved in startups, it's complicated. But execution is everything." Impossible to be neutral Coe says those who suffer from any fallout are the athletes, who he has striven to enrich as much as possible. To that end the World Athletics Ultimate Team Championship will boast a record-setting prize pot of $10 million (9.6 million euros) -- "everybody will pick up something." World Athletics' decision to sanction awarding prize money to Olympic gold medallists in Paris last year did not win Coe many friends in the International Olympic Committee hierarchy or among the federation chiefs of other sports. However, he remains undeterred. "Prize money and improving the lot of the athletes in the next few years is really, really important," said Coe. "Although prize money wasn't flavour of the month in Lausanne (where the IOC is based), we are going to drive ahead on that." Coe says he has always battled for athletes' financial well-being. He and former IOC president Thomas Bach -- who handed over power to Kirsty Coventry on Monday -- co-wrote a speech he delivered to the 1981 IOC Congress raising the topic. Coe says the idea for the Paris prize money came to him on a long-haul flight to New York in February 2024, and he rang Abby Hoffmann, a WA Council member, from a book shop asking her opinion about his "crazy idea." "She replied I think you should take more long-haul flights, and that was how it came about." Coe says it is only fair when one considers the wealth of the IOC. "They're competing in a movement that has billions of dollars," said Coe. "It's a bit like Taylor Swift being the only person not being paid at the concert, but the volunteers and the janitors and the concessions and everybody else is doing OK out of it." Coe and WA's decision to impose a blanket ban on Russian athletes over the invasion of Ukraine was another area where he and Bach disagreed. That ban remains in place, although Coe concedes if a peace agreement is reached then it is not for sport to stand in the way of the Russians' return. The conflict, though, has left its mark on Coe after a visit he paid to Ukraine. "When you get to Kyiv (train station), there's probably 50 or 60 ambulances and hearses waiting on the platform. "Families waiting for the news. They have two carriages, mobile operating theatres and intensive care units, where amputations are taking place as the train's coming back. © 2025 AFP
France 24
16 hours ago
- France 24
Schmidt warned he must release Wallabies for Lions warm-ups
The Lions arrived in Perth on Sunday night where they will face Super Rugby side Western Force in their opening match on Australian soil on Saturday. The Force are set to field five Wallabies -- Nick Champion de Crespigny, Dylan Pietsch, Tom Robertson, Darcy Swain and Nic White -- who have all been released from Australia's training in Sydney. But team-mates Carlo Tizzano and Ben Donaldson have been retained in the Wallabies camp by Australia head coach Joe Schmidt. "We'll see a competitive fixture at the weekend and that's what we're looking for," said Lions chief executive Ben Calveley, who reminded Rugby Australia and Schmidt that releasing the Wallabies was part of the tour agreement. "We want to make sure our guys are battle-hardened when it comes to the Test series. "The agreement is very clear, it says that Test players have to be released to play in fixtures leading into that series. That is our expectation." The Lions also play Super Rugby's Queensland Reds, ACT Brumbies and NSW Waratahs before the first Test in Brisbane on July 19. Schmidt has not yet indicated that he will release any of his players for those fixtures. "We'll play the game at the weekend and will carry on having discussions with (Rugby Australia chief executive) Phil Waugh and take it step-by-step," Calveley said in comments reported by the BBC and other UK media. "It's really important that these games are competitive. It's not just from a performance standpoint, but it's also right for the fans, partners and broadcasters who are all expecting competitive fixtures." The Lions are unlikely to face any of the NSW Waratahs' Australian stars such as Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Angus Bell and Taniela Tupou on July 5 because that match is a day before the Wallabies' sole warm-up match, a Test against Fiji.
