Jurel and Ashwin turn tables on England to put India in sight of series victory

Tourists tumble to 145 all out after losing last seven wickets for 35 runs on chastening day

- Ali Martin

One of the many enduring qualities of Test cricket and its five-day canvas is a team's ability to stage a comeback. The third day at the JSCA International Stadium Complex now sits among the countless examples, India not so much turning the tide as utterly parting the waves with first a characterful lower-order rally and then an intoxicating display of spin bowling.

Ben Stokes and his players had stepped off the team bus in a position of strength, their hosts 134 runs behind with just three first-innings wickets in hand. But by the close the tourists were heading back to their hotel in a state of deflation, India already 40 runs into a meager target of 192 and no wickets in the end column.

There was a fair bit for minds to ponder as English heads hit their pillows, not least a dropped catch by Ollie Robinson that came 59 runs into the wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel's tone-shifting 90 in the morning. Even more consuming was the nosedive with the bat that followed, England rolled for 145 all out after losing their last seven wickets for 35 runs.

The only consolation came from how Ravichandran Ashwin, five for 51, and Kuldeep Yadav, four for 22, had mustered up such utter mischief from the capricious, cracked surface. Whether a greenhorn attack could do the same on day four - even with Shoaib Bashir buzzing from a maiden five-wicket haul - was another matter.