Listen to them,and you would think nothing is ever wrong. Jimmy Anderson said they would chase 600 in Vizag. Ben Duckett said “the more the better” in terms of their target this week,but they fell 434 short. Duckett also reckons they deserve credit for the way Yashasvi Jaiswal is batting,as if no player in history has ever played an attacking shot. They talk about not playing for the draw,but to me that’s disrespectful to Test cricket. The draw is a crucial part of the game,and in five-Test contests has often provided the bedrock of some great series victories.

They have to be careful that people around don’t think they are smug,or above their station. Root’s shot was another reminder that they are in a bubble. All that matters is their dressing room,and fun. There is a bit more to Test cricket than that.

If England are honest,their batting has been poor on this tour. They have made two of the best hundreds I have ever seen,from Ollie Pope and Duckett. Let’s not let them paper over the cracks:two incredible innings do not define a batting unit’s tour. Root is struggling,Bairstow looks all at sea. Stokes is getting starts and playing with control,but not going on. That’s another thing that confuses me about Root’s shot. The captain doesn’t Bazball until he’s with the tail,so why does the best batter feel he needs to do it?

Batting first has been a big help for India but they have worked out the perfect type of pitches to play England on,and I’d expect the last two to be similar. They don’t need to turn too much. England’s spinners are very inexperienced and doing everything they can,but they are not in the same league as guys who aren’t even getting in the India team,like Axar Patel.

The first pitch in Hyderabad did more,so Tom Hartley got seven wickets,and England’s more attacking approach made sense. But in the last two,England needed to rein it in a bit. This style of play can take games away from opponents,but it can also bring them back into it. And at the moment,they are providing opportunities for the best opponents. Another problem with England’s batting is that it’s giving the bowlers no rest. It was no surprise that they shipped 430 in the second innings and looked absolutely shot.

They need to look at the way Jaiswal and Shubman Gill played on day three. They soaked up the pressure for 30 or 40 balls,and then they started to get boundaries. That is what Test batting is about. India have scored 875 runs in 228.5 overs. No one can tell me it’s been boring watching India bat.

England make out that everything is positive but they need to have conversations about how to bat better. This was the worst defeat under Stokes and Brendon McCullum,and one that exposed their method. They cannot take the aggressive approach at every opportunity,they have to pick their moments.

From the position England found themselves in on day three,India,with all their absentees,were there for the taking. Unless England change,India will dominate the rest of the series.

The Telegraph,London

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