Third Test, day three: Five-wicket haul for Ben Stokes

INDIA were finally dismissed for 417 and a lead of 134 runs in the third Test in Mohali.
England's Adil Rashid claimed four victimsEngland's Adil Rashid claimed four victims
England's Adil Rashid claimed four victims

Ben Stokes claimed the final wicket to finish with 5-73 and Yorkshire leg-spinner Adil Rashid had figures of 4-118 after England had initially proved powerless to stop Ravi Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

Alastair Cook’s tourists had hit back on the second afternoon to reduce India to 156-5 in reply to 283 all out.

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But Ashwin (72) and Jadeja (70no) responded with a stand of 97 to help the hosts to 354-7 and a lead of 71 as England managed just one wicket on the third morning.

England’s prospects of battling back to square the series here, or even avoid a 2-0 deficit with two to play, were therefore beginning to recede significantly.

India resumed still marginally in arrears on 271-6 but found easy pickings against Chris Woakes, surprisingly bowling in tandem initially with Moeen Ali rather than James Anderson - an odd deployment of a ball only five overs old.

It took the reintroduction of Stokes to break the seventh-wicket stand, the all-rounder striking in his first over as he had the previous day - when Ashwin drove a wide delivery on the up and was caught at point.

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He had done plenty of damage by then, though, with 11 boundaries in a near three-hour innings which put India back on top in a fluctuating contest.

Jadeja duly completed his 50, from 104 balls, and moved on to a career-best as he and Jayant Yadav extended the advantage in another telling half-century partnership.