Fast bowler James Anderson shared insights into India’s muddled third innings during the Vizag Test, attributing it to England’s recent success with their uber-aggressive playing style. Despite India’s commanding position with a 171-run lead, they faltered and folded for 255 runs on a seemingly unthreatening pitch.
Anderson, aged 41, emphasized that England would have pursued the chase even if India had set a target of 600 runs. The veteran player highlighted England’s history of successful fourth-innings chases, including a notable victory against India at Edgbaston in 2022.
“The nerves were there to see today, the way they batted. They didn’t know how many was enough,” remarked Anderson after Stumps, having contributed to England’s successful day with early wickets. “The chat last night from the coach was that if they get 600, we were going to go for it.”
Expressing England’s commitment to an aggressive play style, Anderson stated, “We will try to do it tomorrow… We will play the same way we have the last two years. Whether we win or lose, it’s not irrelevant because we are extremely competitive and want to win every game we play, but we want to play in a certain way.”
India’s second innings mirrored their first, revolving around one substantial innings by Shubman Gill. However, after Gill’s dismissal for 104, the innings lost direction, with the final six wickets falling for 44 runs.
Anderson pointed out India’s approach as a tell-tale sign of their method, saying, “It definitely felt like they were unsure what a good score would be against us. The wicket is still pretty good, the odd one’s keeping low, but you expect that.”
Despite the challenges, Anderson expressed confidence in England’s quality players, stating, “We’ve got so much quality in our dressing room; there are guys who can maybe get 150 for us tomorrow and win us the game. We’re really happy.”
