4th Test: Root, Prior come to England’s rescue

Tourists put up modest score on slow pitch.

A reeling England was lent a helping hand by debutant Joe Root and Matt Prior as the unbeaten middle-order batsmen steadied the fall of wickets yesterday at Nagpur, helping England reach 199 for five at stumps.

Earlier, India had reduced the tourists to 139 for five before Root (31) and Prior (34) came to the rescue. Root, who was drafted in at number six in Samit Patel’s place, put up a mature batting display as he mixed stout defence with intelligent scoring. Prior also once again kept his nerves and calmly delivered crucial runs.



The opening day of the fourth Test saw improved fielding and bowling by India, with lone paceman Ishant Sharma dismissing Nick Compton (three) and Alastair Cook (one) early.  Kevin Pietersen (73) and Jonathan Trott (44) rescued England from 16 for two before falling victim to debutant all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja.

England lead the series 2-1, having been beaten in the first Test by nine wickets and then going on to win the second and third Tests by 10 and seven wickets respectively.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 14^th, 2012.