"India have to arrive on day three with Virat mentality"- Michael Vaughan

A 166-run opening partnership between Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett on day 2 has put England in the driver’s seat in the fourth Test match of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025. England’s former skipper Michael Vaughan reckons that India need to come out with a ‘Virat Kohli mentality’ of winning day 3 if they have to win the series. According to him, if India don’t play well on day 3, they will go on to lose the series. 

“The series will be decided on Day Three. If England have a great day, I think they’re winning this Test match and that’s the series done and dusted,” he said. “India and Shubman have to arrive on Day Three with that Virat mentality. We have to win the day. If they win tomorrow, the game is alive. If they lose, the series is gone.”

Earlier, India were bundled out for 358 runs in the first innings. The top three batters - KL Rahul (46), Yashasvi Jaiswal (58), and Sai Sudharsan (61) played solid innings to give the team a steady start. However, none of them capitalized on their starts and went on to make a big hundred. Skipper Shubman Gill, once again, got out early, but Rishabh Pant batted with a fractured toe to help his team reach a competitive score. 

Contributions also came from Shardul Thakur (41) and Washington Sundar (27), but India would be gutted to not have stitched one big partnership in the innings. Later, the Indian team displayed its worst bowling performance of the series, allowing England to make a rapid start. 

Zak Crawley (84) and Ben Duckett (94) missed out on their respective hundreds, but a 166-run opening partnership gave them the start they desired. Ollie Pope (20) and Joe Root (11) were unbeaten at stumps on day 3. 

Dinesh Karthik echoes Michael Vaughan’s thoughts 

Dinesh Karthik also agreed with Vaughan’s assessment, emphasising the need for India to bowl well on day 3. He too felt that if India wants to stay alive in the series, they need to have a good day with the ball.  

 "Those are big words and I think it's a very fair observation as well. Because walking into day three, as they call it, the moving day, you would almost think the series hangs in the balance on that day. If India wants to stay alive, they need to have a good day with the ball.” Karthik said. 

England currently lead the five-match series 2-1 and a win in the ongoing fourth Test will ensure a series win.