England’s vice captain Ollie Pope says his team are confident of chasing any target in the fourth innings of the match.
His remarks came at the end of Day 3 of the ongoing first Test in Leeds.
When asked what would be a good score to chase in the fourth innings, Pope told Sky Sports:
“I don’t want to put a number on it because it’s such a quick-scoring ground — you beat the infield and it goes for four. The less, the better, but we back ourselves to chase the target.”
“We’ll try to respect the good balls” – Pope
Having spent considerable time at the crease, Pope believes the pitch is still good for batting and that players just need to respect the good deliveries and punish the loose ones.
“I think the pitch is still playing well. It’s a quick outfield, so we’ll try to respect the good balls and then put away the bad ones,” asserted Pope.
On Day 3, the Shubman Gill-led Indian team managed only a slender lead of six runs after England posted 465 runs, thanks to Pope’s 106 off 137 balls, which included 14 fours, and Harry Brook’s 99 off 112 deliveries, featuring 11 fours and two sixes. Jasprit Bumrah starred with the ball for India, claiming a five-wicket haul.
By the end of the day’s play, India had extended their lead to 96 runs. England will need to take the remaining eight wickets quickly to give themselves a chance to bat again and push for victory.
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