India look to tighten noose around a struggling England

A supremely confident India will look to tighten the noose around a struggling England and India skipper Virat Kohli will be expected to overcome his prolonged lean patch when the third Test of the five-match series begins in Leeds on August 25.

Despite a thumping 151-run win in the second Test, India skipper Kohli's lean patch with the willow continued. Kohli's last international hundred came in November 2019 and though he has scored a couple of 40s in the series so far, the expectations have always been sky high from the modern great.

He looked a tad vulnerable around the off-stump in the first two Tests and one can expect him to present a tighter technique when the ball is pitched on the fourth stump at Headingley.

The form of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane had also been a cause of concern for India but that has been put to rest after the experienced duo batted for almost 50 overs on day four of the Lord's Test and were responsible for taking the game to the final day before the Indian pacers scripted a famous win.

"It's all about the contributions for the team," said vice-captain Rahane. "Cheteshwar and I have been playing for a long time, we know how to handle pressure, we know how to handle certain situations," added Rahane.

Being 1-0 down in the series after a crushing defeat in the second Test at Lord's, Joe Root's men, meanwhile, have a tougher task of drawing level as fast bowler Mark Wood was ruled out of the game.

Wood suffered a shoulder injury diving into an advertising hoarding saving a boundary at Lord's and has now joined Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes and Olly Stone among England's sidelined quicks.

Ben Stokes will also not be returning to the scene with the star all-rounder still on a mental health break.

As for the batting, Root has been a lone shining light in a top-order that has otherwise repeatedly failed to score runs during England's current sequence of seven Tests without a win.

Root, however, remained positive before today's game. "I'm playing for England and I'm playing Test cricket," Root said Monday. "It's quite easy to stay positive in that respect, I'm living my boyhood dream.

"I'm constantly trying to remind myself of that as well, when we are having the odd tough day or things aren't always going our way. When I was 10 years old, I couldn't think of anything else I wanted to do," the 30-year-old added.