Ashwin finished with figures of 5-67 off 29.5 overs
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin picked up his 22nd five-wicket haul in Tests and captain Virat Kohli made an unbeaten 56 as the hosts tormented England for the third day on the trot in Visakhapatnam.
Ashwin is now level with Waqar Younis, Malcolm Marshall, Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh in terms of five-wicket hauls and only 14 bowlers have taken more five-fors than him, with three – Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh and Kapil Dev – being Indians.
Starting off the day on 103/5, England wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow and all-rounder Ben Stokes converted their 23-run partnership into a 110-run stand, during which both batsmen brought up their fifties.
Stokes (left) scored his eighth Test fifty, while Bairstow (right) made his 12th
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Just when England were beginning to cruise and show some fight, Umesh Yadav provided the breakthrough for India as he clean bowled Bairstow for 53, which came off 152 balls and included five boundaries.
This was Bairstow’s ninth score of 50 or more in Tests this year, which equals the record for the most half-centuries in a calendar year. South Africa’s AB de Villiers achieved the same feat in 2013.
Stokes went on to score 70 off 157 deliveries, which included 11 boundaries, before he was trapped lbw off the bowling of Ashwin.
After Stokes was back in the pavilion, Ravindra Jadeja and Ashwin ripped through England’s lower order to bowl them out for 255, which gave India a 200-run lead as they made 455 in their first innings.
Ashwin inflicted the most damage with his five wickets, while Jadeja, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami and debutant Jayant Yadav took one wicket apiece.
With a 200-run lead in hand, India found themselves in trouble early on as their opening pair of Murali Vijay and Lokesh Rahul were taken out by Stuart Broad for three and 10 respectively.
Things went from bad to worse when Cheteshwar Pujara, who scored a brilliant hundred in the first innings, was cleaned up by James Anderson for one run.
With the hosts in a spot of bother at 40/3, Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane came to the rescue with an unbeaten 58-run stand, during which Kohli registered his half-century, before stumps was called.
Kohli finished on 56 off 70 balls, which included six boundaries, while Rahane remained undefeated on 22 off 54 deliveries, which included two boundaries.
Kohli’s sublime form with the bat continued
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Broad was the pick of the bowlers with two wickets, while Anderson claimed one.
India ended day three on 98/3 and will continue batting on Sunday at 09:30 local time or 04:00 GMT.