On Day 05 (July 14) of the third test in the Anderson Tendulkar Trophy 2025, England secured a thrilling 22-run victory against India and took a 2-1 lead in the ongoing series.

The Ben-Stokes-led side ripped apart India’s batting line-up in a 193-run chase, which is one of the lowest totals successfully defended at the Lord’s.

After the first innings scores between England and India levelled at 387, the second innings saw a low-scoring thriller with both teams exhibiting a strong bowling attack.

But it was the English bowlers who were one step ahead of the visitors. Thanks to the noteworthy contributions of Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes, who claimed 3 wickets each by conceding 55 and 48 runs, respectively.

Ravindra Jadeja’s unbeaten 61-run knock kept his team’s hopes alive of chasing a modest target. But, all his efforts turned out to be ineffective as Mohammed Siraj’s dismissal ended India’s innings at 170 in 74.5 overs.

A Huge Blow to India’s Batting Line-Up on Day 04

Despite a strong bowling performance that wrapped England’s second innings to 192, India’s fourth day concluded on a disappointing note, having scored 58/4 in 17.4 overs after Akash Deep’s dismissal.

Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 7-ball duck, followed by the dismissal of Karun Nair (14 runs) and Shubman Gill (6 runs), further strained India’s run chase.

Even the night watchman, Akash Deep, wasn’t able to preserve his wicket for long and departed after scoring just a run, out of 11 deliveries faced.

KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant Were Expected to Anchor India’s Innings

Indian opener KL Rahul seemed to anchor India’s innings in a tricky run chase after a horrible start. However, the England skipper Ben Stokes concluded Rahul’s innings at an early stage and had to depart after scoring 58-ball-39 runs (including 6 fours).

Also, India’s in-form batter Rishabh Pant could have easily formed another century partnership with KL Rahul for the second consecutive time in this match.

But Jofra Archer’s fiery bowling attack ended Pant’s stay at the crease, who scored just 9 runs out of 12 balls (including 2 fours).

Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah’s 35-Run Partnership

At 112/8 in 39.3 overs, India were on the brink of facing a defeat. But, Jasprit Bumrah as the No.10 batter joined Ravindra Jadeja and the duo stitched a 35-run partnership for nearly 22 overs.

Once again, it was Ben Stokes who stepped into action during the crucial moments and dismissed Bumrah, who played a supportive role to Jadeja as a tailender, scoring 5 runs out of 54 balls.

Jadeja’s Resistance, along with Siraj

Despite wickets falling at one end, Ravindra Jadeja showed his willpower. He scored a 181-ball 61-run knock (including 4 fours and 1 six) and kept the scoreboard active by ensuring to rotate the strike with the last batter, Mohammed Siraj.

Post the tea session, India still required 30 runs to score, which wasn’t easy at all, particularly against the formidable bowling attack of England.

Siraj’s Wicket Leads England to a Nail-Biting Victory

Team India were just 22 runs away from victory with one wicket in hand. And everything the tailender Mohammed Siraj had to do was defend the ball as much as possible and hand over the strike to Jadeja.

In the penultimate ball of the 75th over, England spinner Shoaib Bashir bowled a routine delivery to Siraj. Although the No.11 batter successfully defended with the bat. Unexpectedly, the ball turned back. Before Siraj could notice it, the ball spun and rolled right past his shoes and struck the stumps, thereby knocking the bails off.

Bashir, who injured his finger on his left hand on Saturday (July 12), became the main contributor to England’s celebration. 

Victory at Lord’s: A Coincidence in the 2019 World Cup Final

Moreover, England secured a victory at Lord’s six years before on this same day (July 14), where Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer featured in England’s sensational ODI World Cup 2019 final victory against New Zealand at the Lord’s.

The Eoin Morgan-led side triumphed over the Kiwis in a dramatic super over thriller contest to lift the highly coveted trophy.

During the post-match presentation, Ben Stokes, who was granted the Player of the Match award, revealed that the 6th anniversary was one of the main reasons behind his choice to open the bowling attack with Jofra Archer. 

India’s Fourth-Narrowest Defeat in Tests

Despite having higher chances of winning the Lord’s test, the England bowlers ensured to prevent the visitors from building at least a 50+ partnership. Unfortunately, Team India succumbed to their fourth-narrowest defeat in Tests:

Conclusion

As the focus now shifts to the fourth test at Old Trafford starting on July 23, both teams would certainly remember a 5-day tight contest at the Lord’s that will further enhance their preparations for the forthcoming clash.

With this victory, England now leads the 5-match test series with 2-1 and require another victory to seal the series at home. On the other hand, India is now in a must win situation to win their upcoming test in Manchester to keep their chances alive of winning the series in England after 18 years.