London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Mar 01, 2026

India beat England inside two days

India beat England inside two days

England succumbed to a 10-wicket defeat against India inside two days of an astonishing third Test in Ahmedabad.

England have been bowled out for less than 200 in five consecutive innings

On a scarcely believable day when both sides collapsed and 17 wickets fell in two sessions, India completed the quickest Test win since 1935 not long into the final session.

England began the day with a thrilling fightback, turning India's overnight 99-3 into 145 all out.

But, faced with a first-innings deficit of 33, England were bowled out for 81 as India's spinners ran riot once again.

In a frenzied start to their second innings, England lost Zak Crawley and Jonny Bairstow within three balls - both bowled by Axar Patel.

Ben Stokes and Joe Root briefly calmed the raucous atmosphere but their dismissals in consecutive overs sparked a sorry procession to England's lowest Test total in India.

Spinners were responsible for every wicket to fall on the day - and 28 of the 30 in the match - Joe Root taking 5-8 in the first session, Axar 5-32 and Ravichandran Ashwin 4-48, including his 400th Test scalp.

India cruised to their target of 49 inside eight overs, an incredible game wrapped up before the floodlit conditions of a day-night Test could have an impact.

Victory gave India, who lost the first Test, an unassailable 2-1 lead in the series with one match to play and ended England's hopes of qualifying for the World Test Championship final this summer.

England blown away on wild day


If the first day of this Test was remarkable - England bowled out for 112 despite winning the toss - the second was one of the most incredible in recent memory.

Neither side got to grips with a turning pitch, at least not until India's chase when England were demoralised after their second collapse of the game.

The 17 wickets fell in 53 overs for the loss of 127 runs, the match over with almost 30 overs remaining on the second day.

India's Rohit Sharma completed victory by hitting Joe Root for six
The fact Root, a part-time off-spinner, claimed such extraordinary figures showed the difficulties faced by batsmen. The spinners found extravagant turn but wickets often fell to deliveries that skidded on.

Although England's fightback brought them back into the contest, the skill and relentless accuracy of Axar and Ashwin proved too much for a side that also collapsed twice in the second-Test defeat.

Had England mustered another 100 runs India would have had a difficult chase.

Instead, under little pressure, Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma cantered to victory in one-day mode to the delight of the crowd in the world's largest cricket stadium.

England's defeat in numbers


*  England lasted 476 balls across two innings - the fifth fewest in their Test history.

*  England scored less than 200 runs in the game for only the seventh time, and the third since 1904.

*  It is the eighth two-day Test since World War Two and England's first defeat inside two days since 1921.

First, India fold...


Having wasted winning the toss on day one, England's fightback with the ball gave them a route back into the contest.

Jack Leach, who removed India captain Virat Kohli in the final over on Wednesday, struck twice early on day two, bowling Ajinkya Rahane as he tried to cut trapping a sweeping Rohit Sharma lbw for 66.

Root then ran through the lower middle order.

Rishabh Pant was caught behind off Root's first ball before Washington Sundar and Axar fell in the space of three balls to give the England captain figures of 3-0.

While it was Root's first five-wicket haul in Tests, it only added the questions over England's choice to pick one frontline spinner in Leach - a view compounded when Root opened the bowling in the fourth innings.

India collapsed from 114-3 to 145 as Leach finished with 4-48, but an impressive bowling performance was soon to be wasted by England's batsmen.

...then England collapse again


England's first showing with the bat put them in a difficult position. The second was feeble and confirmed their fate.

Having seen Crawley bowled first ball, Bairstow attempted to sweep his first delivery and was given out lbw. Although he overturned the decision on review, he was bowled next ball to complete a pair on his return to the side.

After Dom Sibley was caught behind attempting a leg-side heave at Axar, Root and Stokes batted positively in exceptionally difficult conditions but a wicket never felt far away.

Root had already survived a tight review when he was leg before for 19 pushing forward to Axar, and Stokes fell in similar fashion to Ashwin for 25.

Ashwin has now dismissed Stokes 11 times in Tests and, once he fell, the result seemed inevitable.

Ashwin tormented Ollie Pope before bowling him for 12, then had Jofra Archer lbw as he swiped across the line to give him his 400th Test wicket. Playing his 77nd Test, Ashwin is the second quickest bowler to reach the landmark, after Sri Lanka legend Muttiah Muralitharan's 72.

A series that started so strongly with the bat - England scored 578 in the first innings of the first Test - is teetering on the brink of disarray.

Defeat does not 'define' England - what they said


England captain Joe Root: "We're bitterly disappointed. We don't define ourselves on a performance like that. It was a very challenging surface.

"We missed an opportunity, more in the first innings than anything. If we'd got 200, that would have been a very good score on that wicket and the game would have looked completely different."

India captain Virat Kohli: "The result went our way but the quality of batting wasn't at all up to standard by both teams. We were 100-3 and hoping to get more than we needed. There was a lack of application from both sides."

India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin: "It felt amazing when the board was flashing 400 wickets and the crowd were clapping for me.

"When we collapsed I thought the game could be in the balance, but Axar Patel pulled it back for us and it was a good performance in the third innings."

England bowler Steven Finn: "England are going to have to look at their team selection. I'll be amazed if we don't see a different balance for the last Test.

"But the most important thing is doing your best to draw a line under this game now. They still have an opportunity to draw the series and it is only two Test matches ago that they produced one of the most complete performances by an England team in the sub-continent for a long time."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
When the State Replaces the Parent: How Gender Policy Is Redefining Custody and Coercion
Bill Clinton Denies Knowing Woman in Hot Tub Photo During Closed-Door Epstein Deposition
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton Testifies on Ties to Jeffrey Epstein Before Congressional Oversight Committee
Dyson Reaches Settlement in Landmark UK Forced Labour Case
Barclays and Jefferies Shares Fall After UK Mortgage Lender Collapse Rekindles Credit Market Concerns
Play Exploring Donald Trump’s Rise to Power by ‘Lehman Trilogy’ Author to Premiere in the UK
Man Arrested After Churchill Statue Defaced in Central London
Keir Starmer Faces Political Setback as Labour Finishes Third in High-Profile By-Election
UK Assisted Dying Bill Set to Fall Short in Parliament as Regional Initiatives Gain Ground
UK Defence Ministry Clarifies Position After Reports of Imminent Helicopter Contract
Independent Left-Wing Plumber Secures Shock Victory as Greens Surge in UK By-Election
Reform UK Refers Alleged ‘Family Voting’ Incidents in By-Election to Police
United Kingdom Temporarily Withdraws Embassy Staff from Iran Amid Heightened Regional Tensions
UK Government Reaches Framework Agreement on Release of Mandelson Vetting Files
UK Police Contracts With Israeli Surveillance Firms Spark Debate Over Ethics and Oversight
United Airlines Passenger Hears Cockpit Conversations After Accessing In-Flight Audio Channel
Spain to Conduct Border Checks on Gibraltar Arrivals Under New Post-Brexit Framework
Engie Shares Jump After $14 Billion Agreement to Acquire UK Power Grid Assets
BNP Paribas Overtakes Goldman Sachs in UK Investment Banking League Tables
Geothermal Project to Power Ten Thousand Homes Marks UK Renewable Energy Milestone
UK Visa Grants Drop Nineteen Percent in 2025 as Migration Controls Tighten
Barclays and Jefferies Among Banks Exposed to Collapse of UK Mortgage Lender MFS
UK Asylum Applications Edge Down in 2025 Despite Rise in Small Boat Crossings
Jefferies Reports Significant Exposure After Collapse of UK Lender MFS
FTSE 100 Reaches Fresh Record Highs as Major Share Buybacks and Earnings Lift London Stocks
So, what's happened is, I think, government policy, not just under Labour, but under the Conservatives as well, has driven a lot of small landlords out of business.
Larry Summers, the former U.S. Treasury Secretary, is resigning from Harvard University as fallout continues over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, with the Dow gaining about six-tenths of a percent, the S&P 500 adding eight-tenths of a percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbing roughly one-and-a-quarter percent.
From fears of AI-fuelled unemployment to Big Tech's record investment, this is AI Weekly.
Apple just dropped iOS 26.4.
US Lawmakers Seek Briefing from UK Over Reported Encryption Order Directed at Apple
UK Business Secretary Calls on EU to Remove Trade Barriers Hindering Growth
Legal Pathways for Removing Prince Andrew from Britain’s Line of Succession Examined
PM Netanyahu welcome India PM Narendra Modi to Israel
Shadow Diplomacy: How Harry and Meghan’s Jordan Trip Undermines the Monarchy
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, co-owner of Manchester United, comments on immigration in the UK.
Bill Gates, the UN and the WEF are attempting to construct "a giant digital gulag for all of humanity" via digital ID, CBDCs and vaccine passport infrastructure.
Britain’s Channel Crisis: Paying Billions While the Boats Keep Coming
Downing Street’s Veteran Deception Scandal
UK HealthCare Expands ‘Food as Health’ Initiative Statewide to Tackle Chronic Illness in Kentucky
Leonardo Chief Says UK Set to Decide on New Medium Helicopter Programme
UK Slows Chagos Islands Agreement After Concerns Raised in Washington
European and UK Stock Markets Reach Fresh Highs as Banks and Miners Lead Rally
UK Government Insists Chagos Islands Negotiations Continue After Minister’s ‘Pause’ Remark
No Confirmed Deal for Engie to Acquire UK Power Networks Amid Market Speculation
UK Reaffirms Updated Entry Requirements for Travellers as of February 25, 2026
General Atlantic to sell equity stake in ByteDance, valuing the company at $550 billion
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz Secures Pledge from China for Greater Imports of Quality Goods
Lord Mandelson Condemns Arrest as Driven by ‘Baseless Suggestion’ He Would Flee Abroad
Former UK Ambassador Released on Bail Following Arrest in Epstein-Linked Investigation
×