Ollie Pope hammers 71 versus India in Manchester Test: Stats
What's the story
England batter Ollie Pope scored a solid 71 to put England in a strong position on Day 3 of the fourth Test match versus India at Old Trafford in Manchester. Pope resumed the day on an unbeaten 20 with Joe Root at the other end (11*). The duo helped England reach 332/2 at lunch. Root was unscathed on 63 and Pope was batting on 71. After lunch, spinner Washington Sundar accounted for Pope's dismissal to hand India a breakthrough.
Bowling woes
Indian bowlers fail to make inroads as a partnership blossoms
Day 3 of the Manchester Test saw the Indian bowling attack, led by Jasprit Bumrah, failed to trouble the two batters. They were guilty of delivering too many loose balls on the leg side, which relieved pressure off the opposition. Anshul Kamboj created a chance in his first spell but Dhruv Jurel couldn't hold onto a tough catch when Pope was on 48. Both players rotated the strike well and kept the runs flowing. It was Sundar, who ended a 144-run stand between the two.
Stats
Pope slams his 16th fifty in Tests
Pope scored 71 runs from 128 balls, hitting 7 fours. With this knock, the senior batter has raced to 3,558 runs from 60 matches at 35.58. This was his 16th fifty (100s: 9). Earlier on Day 2, he surpassed 3,500 runs with his 13th of the contest. He took 105 innings. As per ESPNcricinfo, Pope has scored 872 runs versus India from 17 matches (32 innings) at 27.25. This was his 2nd fifty (100s: 2).
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Pope surpasses 2,000 Test runs on home soil
During his knock of 71, Pope went past 2,000 Test runs on home soil. In 32 matches (54 innings), Pope owns 2,045 runs at an average of 40.49. This was his 9th fifty at home. He also owns 6 tons.