Mohammed Siraj was at his animated best on Day 1 of the third Test at Lord’s, engaging in a cheeky sledge aimed at Joe Root. The incident unfolded during a tense passage of play post-lunch when India’s bowlers turned the screws on the English batters. Jasprit Bumrah and Siraj applied consistent pressure, and England found themselves unable to score freely, with a remarkable stretch of 28 consecutive dot balls.

It was during the 31st over that Siraj decided to mock England’s aggressive Bazball approach. Root, in an attempt to break the shackles, went for a shot that barely missed his outside edge due to extra bounce. That was all the invitation Siraj needed to chirp in. The fast bowler sarcastically encouraged Root to go for Bazball, saying, “Baz, Baz, Bazball. Now Play Bazball. I want to see.” The line drew laughter from some teammates and underscored Siraj’s trademark energy.

Earlier, England had gone into lunch at 85 for two and expected to be able to increase the scoring in the second session. However, India's fielders were sharp, and their bowlers refused to give away easy runs. Despite the branding of Bazball, England looked tentative and cautious, doing exactly what India wanted on a pitch with a bit of movement. It was a key moment in the day’s play where the balance remained evenly poised.

Nitish Reddy Breaks England’s Start After Drinks

Before Siraj’s Bazball sledge, it was Nitish Kumar Reddy who provided India with an important breakthrough. Just after the drinks break in the first session, he dismissed both openers—Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley—in the same over. While Duckett gloved one down the leg side to Pant, Crawley was done in by a delivery that shaped away. In between, Shubman Gill dropped a tough chance to dismiss Ollie Pope on zero.

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See Also: WATCH: Shubman Gill sledges Joe Root and Ollie Pope in ongoing ENG vs IND third Test

Despite the missed opportunity, India kept up the intensity and didn’t allow England to dictate terms. Siraj’s mockery of Root not only lifted the energy in the field but also added a layer of drama to a fiercely fought session of Test cricket.

India captain Shubman Gill was in a playful mood on Day 1 of the third Test against England as he engaged in some light-hearted sledging that reflected the state of the game. With England struggling to maintain their trademark Bazball approach, Gill took a cheeky dig at the hosts' slow scoring rate. After England lost both openers—Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley—and took 35.4 overs to reach 100 runs, Gill sarcastically shouted, “No more entertaining cricket. Welcome back to the boring Test cricket, boys.”

Earlier in the day, Nitish Kumar Reddy provided India with a crucial double breakthrough in a single over just before lunch. England were reduced to 83 for two, thanks to Reddy’s precise bowling. His first wicket came via a bit of fortune when Duckett gloved a short ball on the leg side to wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant. On the next delivery, Ollie Pope was nearly dismissed, but Gill couldn’t grab a difficult chance at gully. The over ended with a gem of a delivery that dismissed Crawley—seaming away just enough to take the edge and carry safely to Pant.

India had made just one change to their XI from the previous match, with Jasprit Bumrah replacing Prasidh Krishna. England captain Ben Stokes, going against the usual Bazball tactic, opted to bat first in a home Test for only the second time in this era. While India’s seamers—Bumrah, Akash Deep, and Siraj—took some time adjusting to the Lord’s slope, they eventually found their rhythm. Akash Deep, who had a memorable match in Edgbaston with 10 wickets, shared the new ball with Bumrah but was later replaced by Reddy, who made an immediate impact.

England's Cautious Start Draws Ironic Cheers

The tone was set early when Duckett and Crawley started cautiously, scoring 39 in the first 13 overs. The Indian pace trio challenged them with disciplined lines, but it was more than two hours until India made the breakthrough. The entire session turned with the introduction of Nitish Reddy, as he delivered fiery over that shifted the session's momentum back in favor of India. After England had a little recovery with Joe Root getting a half-century, England’s rate of just below 3 an over was anathema to the whole idea of being aggressive.

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Gill - "Welcome back to Boring Test Cricket Boys". 😁✅

- A GREAT BANTER AT LORD's. pic.twitter.com/ozxCUGE9cm

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 10, 2025

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Gill’s comment, delivered in good spirit, not only summed up England’s slow progress but also reminded fans of how mind games are an integral part of the longest format. As the Test progresses, such moments add spice to an already tense battle between two proud cricketing nations.

After two exciting Test matches at Leeds and Edgbaston where the series was nicely poised at 1-1, the entire focus was on the third fixture of the five-match series at Lord’s. The pitch was always going to be a key factor for the competition as the home head coach, Brendon McCullum, requested a spicy and bouncy surface from the MCC grounds men.

But the two former England captains, Stuart Broad and Michael Atherton, reckoned that it wouldn’t be possible for the change as the preparation generally starts a week before the commencement of the encounter. That could perhaps be an indirect message from the former Kiwi captain to the fourth and fifth Test at Old Trafford in Manchester and Kennington Oval in South London.

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Broad expressed that on such a dry surface, pace and bounce are not expected to arrive, especially with the sun shining at its full power. The weather will remain hot as the MCC has already asked their members that it won’t be a requirement to wear jackets inside the long room. The former feels that the heat will bring some roughness to the surfaces a few days later.

Lord’s pitch conditions revealed for Eng vs Ind 2025 Test

Since June 2022, the England captain, Ben Stokes, hasn’t shown any desire to bat first and has rather always tried to chase in the fourth innings. The only occasion on which he won the toss and chose to bat first in England came during the opening Ashes 2023 Test at Edgbaston, before he did the same at Lord’s for this encounter against India.

"It's a bat first day isn't it!"

Stuart Broad and Michael Atherton assess the conditions at Lord's ahead of the third Test ☀️ pic.twitter.com/gXkeKZ9P5R

— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) July 10, 2025

Even with the sun out, he wanted to bat second at Leeds. England winning the game didn’t happen for that reason. Any time will lose a Test match if they continue to drop catches one after another, and India also faced the lower-order collapses in the encounter twice. Shubman Gill, the Indian captain, also wanted to bowl first at Edgbaston, but got lucky because of not win the toss.

The conditions on July 10 look perfect for batting first, as England selected. The bowlers won’t be happy to get their feet in the middle, but the first couple of sessions will be the only period when they could use any help and assistance off the surface.

Just a couple of hours before the start of the third Test of the five-match series between England and India, the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground has revealed an iconic portrait of a star player, who will be present during the opening day and also ring the bell. On the morning of the game, in the presence of the current president of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Mark Nicholas, the presentation happened.

The iconic portrait is of none other than the former Indian captain, Sachin Tendulkar. The leading run-getter of the longest format is present at the ground. He arrived in the United Kingdom a couple of days ago and also went to a charity function in London, held by his former team-mate and the World Cup-winning all-rounder, Yuvraj Singh.

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It's a beautiful portrait of the right-handed batter, which will now stay at the Lord’s museum. Tendulkar finished at the top of the run-scoring tally in the red-ball format with 15921 runs in 329 innings at an average of 53.78 and a strike rate of 54.04, thanks to 51 centuries and 68 half-centuries. However, he doesn’t even have a red-ball half-century at this venue.

Lord’s reveals iconic portrait of Sachin Tendulkar

The Mumbai batter didn’t enjoy the venue a lot in the longest format, with just 195 runs in nine innings at an average of under 22, scoring the best score of just 37. Overall, in England, the right-handed batter smashed 1575 runs in Tests in this country. He took 30 innings for the feat at an average of 54.31, adding four centuries and eight fifties.

A very special morning unveiling the new Sachin Tendulkar portrait in the Lord’s museum. 🖼️🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/OW3jLsqaFq

— Lord's Cricket Ground (@HomeOfCricket) July 10, 2025

India have made a fine comeback in the series after their mammoth 336-run victory during the second Edgbaston Test. Captain Shubman Gill smashed a fine 269 in the first innings of the encounter before adding another 161 in the second. The other batters, Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja, also contributed immensely in the process before the two pacers, Akash Deep and Mohammed Siraj, broke England’s back with the new ball.

Going into the Lord’s Test, the expectation is to get a green and bouncy surface where the ball will nip around as the home head coach, Brendon McCullum, requested from the MCC grounds men. During the previous 2021 game at this ground, India earned a fantastic victory after bundling out the hosts in less than 60 overs.