Page 14 - England Cricket Team

Tough Ashes series awaits England, warns Australian batter Steve Smith

England batters are making merry on "pretty flat" pitches at home but the Ashes series later this year will throw an altogether different challenge when Ben Stokes-led side visits Australia, warns batting stalwart Steve Smith. The ease of batting in the ongoing India-England has become a topic of debate and Smith believes the British batters shouldn't get too used to batting-friendly pitches. The two teams have managed to score more than 500 runs in an innings at least once and have consistently put on board runs in excess of 400. "Their (England) batters are going to be challenged a little bit differently to the wickets they have had over in England for a while, which have looked pretty flat and good for batting," Smith was quoted as saying by BBC Sport. "The wickets in Australia in the last three or four years have been very tricky for top order batters. It is going to be a good challenge for them. But it's going to be a wonderful series." As part of preparation for the Ashes, S

Kevin Pietersen says modern batting conditions much easier than before

England great Kevin Pietersen has stirred a fresh debate by claiming that batting in the current era is "way easier" than it was 20-25 years ago, suggesting a decline in the quality of bowling across Test-playing nations. Pietersen's comments on his social media handle came a day after fellow England batter Joe Root overtook Australia great Ricky Ponting to climb to second place in the all-time list of Test run scorers. "Don't shout at me but batting these days is way easier than 20/25 years ago! Probably twice as hard back then!, Pietersen wrote on X on Saturday. Pietersen, who played 104 Tests, 136 ODIs and 37 T20Is for England between 2005 and 2013, has been as flamboyant with his views as he was in the middle with the bat. The former right-handed batter, who made 8,181 runs at 47.28 with 23 tons and 35 fifties in Test cricket, said batting was twice as hard back then. Pietersen named a host of bowlers from the past eras and challenged his readers to name 10 contemporary bowler

England vs India HIGHLIGHTS 4th Test Day 3: Root-Stokes power ENG to 544 for 7 at day 3 stumps

4th Test | ENG vs IND HIGHLIGHTS: India bowled a total of 89 overs today, which is the most overs bowled in a single day so far in this series

Root becomes 2nd highest run-scorer in Tests, only behind Sachin Tendulkar

Root started the day at number five and surpassed three legends to reach the number two spot

Root hits his 38th Test ton, 13 hundreds away from Tendulkar's record of 51

Root has also surpassed Ricky Ponting in the all-time highest run scorers in Test cricket and now holds the second spot behind Sachin

ENG vs IND 4th Test: IND bowlers helpless as Root-Pope dominate 1st session

All four English batters have crossed the 50-run mark in the first innings of the Manchester Test

Shardul Thakur heaps praise on Pant for batting despite injury in 4th Test

India all-rounder Shardul Thakur on Thursday lauded Rishabh Pan't "unmatched" courage and pain threshold after the latter came out to bat on day two of the fourth Test against England with a broken foot. Speaking to reporters, Shardul confirmed that Pant indeed suffered a fracture while batting on day one. "I think it was always our plan (to try and bring Pant to the middle). There were quite a few efforts from the medical team. So, yes, kudos to them," said Shardul referring to Pant's fifty that helped India post 358 in their first innings. "They could get Rishabh back onto the field. He could bat there for a while. And whatever he did, it's of course vital runs for the team he scored. "And yes, he was in a lot of pain. And we have seen him doing a lot of amazing things. And this was just another amazing thing that he did for the team today," added Shardul. Shardul and the rest of his teammates were excited to see how Pant approached his innings after resuming at an overnight 37

England vs India HIGHLIGHTS, 4th Test Day 2: IND get 2 wickets before stumps; ENG trail by 133 runs

ENG vs IND 4th Test HIGHLIGHTS: Manchester, Day 2, Stumps - Joe Root and Ollie Pope will continue tomorrow for the Three Lions who are at 225/2 after 46 overs.

ENG vs IND 4th Test live streaming: Where to watch Day 2 live for free?

Check all the live telecast and live streaming details for the ENG vs IND 4th Test Day 2 action in Manchester here.

England vs India HIGHLIGHTS, 4th Test: IND conclude hard-fought day with injury concerns for Pant

4th Test | ENG vs IND HIGHLIGHTS: Pant's injury was the highlight at the end of the day as India are 4 wickets down and will begin Day 2 at 264/4.

ENG vs IND: Injury concerns deepen for India on opening day in Manchester

Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur continue to bat for India after Sai Sudharshan too was dismissed in the final session by Stokes after a gritty fifty.

Jaiswal makes history with half-century in Manchester Test as Indian opener

Jaiswal had the chance to become only the fourth batter to score a hundred in Tests in Manchester, but lost his wicket to Liam Dawson on 58

Has mental fatigue led to India's top-order struggles in Manchester Test?

In the post-session show on JioHotstar, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar said that players don't lose wickets with the kind of shots Indian players played after getting a start of 40-50 runs

Post-lunch reversal: England halt India's confident start in Manchester

Stokes wasn't disappointed by spinner Liam Dawson as he went on to get the big fish Yashasvi Jasiwal's wicket as the opener was caught behind in the slips at 58.

Stealth and Skill: IND openers unfazed by Manchester's overcast challenge

With clouds hovering over Old Trafford cricket ground, it was expected that the Indian batters will have a difficult beginning to the proceedings. However, the IND openers stood firm in the middle.

England vs India Playing 11, 4th Test: 3 changes in India's XI! Sai, Kamboj, Shardul playing today

India made three changes for this Test: Sai Sudharsan replaced Karun Nair, while Shardul Thakur and debutant Anshul Kamboj came in for the injured Akash Deep and Nitish Reddy.

ENG vs IND 4th Test: Manchester pitch report, highest score, key toss stats

Bowling first may tempt captains under overcast skies, but no team has ever won a Test at Old Trafford after opting to bowl-making it a risky toss decision.

ENG vs IND 4th Test: Anshul Kamboj becomes 318th player to debut for India

Anshul Kamboj's defining moment came during the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy, where he produced a historic 10-wicket innings (10/49) against Kerala

England vs India 4th Test Playing 11, live toss time, ENG vs IND streaming

England announced their playing 11 for the Manchester Test, a day before the match, bringing only one change. Liam Dawson replaces injured Shoaib Bashir in England's XI for 4th Test vs India

ENG vs IND 4th Test live streaming: Where to watch Day 1 live for free?

Check all the live telecast and live streaming details for the ENG vs IND 4th Test Day 1 action in Manchester here.