ENG vs IND: Ravindra Jadeja's Gritty Fifty in Vain as India Suffer 22-Run Defeat in the Lord's Test
Synopsis
Team India faced a narrow defeat against England in the third Test at Lord's despite Ravindra Jadeja's resilient innings. Chasing 193, India were bowled out for 170, falling 23 runs short of the target and now trail 1-2 in the five-match series.
Team India suffered a heartbreaking 22-run defeat at the hands of England in the third Test of the ongoing five-match series at Lord’s in London on Monday, July 14.
Chasing a 193-run target, India were bundled out for 170 in 74.5 overs, collapsing under persistent pressure from England bowlers, who handed them a defeat despite a modest target that initially seemed chaseable the collapse. Amid the visitors' batting collapse, Ravindra Jadeja stood tall like a lone warrior and grinded across all three sessions of the final day. The southpaw played a gritty innings of 61 off 181 balls and steadied India's ship.
However, Jadeja's resilience and grit unfortunately did not pay off in the end as Team India fell 23 runs short of achieving the target. The pressure fell on Ravindra Jadeja to take the team past the finishing line, but England managed to seal a dramatic win in the Lord's Test with the final wicket of Mohammed Siraj, who was dismissed by Shoaib Bashir
With the Lord’s Test defeat, India are currently trailing 1-2 in the five-match series against England. The Shubman Gill-led side lost the series opener at Headingley before making a comeback to clinch a victory at Edgbaston.
Ravindra Jadeja's Lone Battle Goes in Vain
Team India resumed their run-chase with an overnight score of 58/4 in 17.4 overs, with KL Rahul batting on 33 off 47 balls, and needed 135 runs to win heading into the final day of the Lord’s Test. However, the visitors lost wickets at regular intervals on a challenging Day 5 pitch at Lord’s, as they were reduced to 112/8 at the stroke of Lunch.
The only man at the crease whom India had immense hope in was Ravindra Jadeja, who scored 72 in the first innings. Jadeja had two tailenders, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, for company and carried India’s fading hopes on his shoulders. Jadeja stitched a gritty 36-run stand for the ninth wicket with Bumrah, who played as a second fiddle with resistance and scored 5 off 54 balls before he perished to Ben Stokes.
With only one wicket left in India, Ravindra Jadeja was left with no choice but to farm a strike and try to finish the job for the visitors. Jadeja tried to protect Mohammed Siraj from a strike and played out the bulk of each over with calm assurance, inching India closer to victory. On the fourth of the 76th over, India’s fate was eventually sealed.
Shoaib Bashir bowled a toss-up delivery, which Mohammed Siraj tried his best to defend the ball. However, the ball spun sharply and rolled into the leg stump, enough to dislodge the ball, leaving Siraj crestfallen and Jadeja devastated at the non-striker’s end.
With the defeat, Team India was denied their fourth Test victory at Lord’s. India’s last three victories at Lord’s came in 1986, 2014, and 2021, respectively. The Shubman Gill-led side had the best chance to script another Test victory for India at the ‘Home of Cricket’, but collective batting failure on the final day, despite Ravindra Jadeja’s valiant efforts, meant that opportunity heartbreakingly slipped through their fingers.
Twists and Turns on the final day
The final day of the Lord’s was nothing short of a drama, filled with hopes, emotions, and heartbreaks. The momentum was completely on England’s side at the start of Day 5, with Team India at 58/4 and needing 135 runs to win the match.
The tide was completely tilted in favour of England when Team India was reduced to 82/7 following the dismissals of Rishabh Pant (7), KL Rahul (39), and Washington Sundar (0). After Sundar’s dismissal, Ravindra Jadeja was joined by Nitish Kumar Reddy at the crease. The pair steadied India’s ship and took the visitors past the 100-run mark before Nitish was dismissed by Chris Woakes at 112/8 before Lunch.
After Lunch, the momentum gradually shifted towards India when Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah gave the visitors a glimmer of hope of chasing down the target with their gritty partnership. When Bumrah was dismissed by Stokes, India’s dressing room went silent as the momentum again shifted towards England, who needed just one wicket to win.
Again, glimmer was hope was revived when Team India crossed the 160-run mark, and Ravindra Jadeja was still at the crease. As India reached 164/9, the required runs to win went below 30, every wave of nervous anticipation in the Lord’s crowd. Unfazed by the occasion, Ravindra Jadeja stood tall for the side and expertly shielded Siraj and narrowed the target with calculated singles and crisp boundaries.
For a brief moment, it looked like a victory was in touching distance until the hopes were completely shattered when Shoaib Bashir produced a moment of magic that sealed the visitors’ fate in the Lord’s Test.