Stokes : Was nice to see the back of Kohli, but then Rahul got a big score

After a 152-run opening stand between Parthiv Patel and KL Rahul, England were able to dismiss Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli, who have tormented them throughout the series, cheaply, but then Rahul held the fort and formed another big partnership with Karun Nair to take India to a comfortable position at the end of day 3.

Ben Stokes has praised India’s batting prowess saying, “In every game, someone has gone on to get a big score. It was nice to see the back of Kohli, but unfortunately someone else (Rahul) got a big score. I don’t think I have ever played a game where someone has got out (for 199 ) actually. He played well, but at the end we took his wicket. All credit to Rahul.”

The English all-rounder has also pointed out the lack of reverse swing on offer for the seamers.

“That’s probably been most surprising. We have kept the ball in really good condition, but they really get soft easily here compared to the Kookaburra we used in Bangladesh where we managed to get reverse swing,” Stokes said, reported The Hindu.

England are currently trailing India 0-3 in the five-match series, and this is their last chance to redeem themselves. However, despite putting up a big score in the first innings, the visitors have been unable to restrict India with the ball, and Stokes has hoped that they can run through the Indian side in the morning session of day 4 to give themselves a chance of signing off with a win.

“We want to walk away with a win. If we can get out there and run through them in a session, score some runs and put them under pressure... that’s what we will try to do,” Stokes added.