The elements are doing their best to thwart matters, but a fine Test match remains in progress in Nottingham, nonetheless. As is always the case when the ball is in the ascendancy, swinging and nipping just enough to create problems, the cricket has been compelling. The rustiness and flaws of both teams have been apparent too, not surprisingly given the sketchy build-up. England are up against it and will have to bat far better in their second innings, after India chiselled out a sizeable first-innings lead thanks to some rare lower-order contributions. That ought to be significant in a reasonably low-scoring game, although there were signs in the brief reply from England that conditions had

Source: The Times August 06, 2021 20:26 UTC