Stokes undone by foot fault against Ashwin

Stokes v Ashwin
R Ashwin dismissed Ben Stokes for the fifth time in the series. A batsman should worry if there's a pattern developing in the dismissals. Stokes has a tendency to plant his front foot down the pitch, that's why he's often been away from the line of the ball. The thinking behind the footwork could be to protect the front pad from the straighter ball, but that has caused him to play the wrong line to the delivery that turns away from the left-hand batsman. Most of Stokes' dismissals to Ashwin have been when the bowler has come around the stumps, and that line should have dictated that the front foot come slightly across.

Moeen against the bouncer
Moeen Ali's dismissal highlighted the importance of having a defensive technique against the bouncer. The trap had been set and Moeen knew it too, but he was unable to defend or avoid them, and so played into the hands of the Indian fast bowlers. It's almost impossible to hit your way out of a bouncer trap. Moeen's dismissal also asked a critical question - why had the Indian quicks bowled only two bouncers at him on the first day?

Ishant's full lengths
On the first day, Ishant Sharma dismissed Keaton Jennings with a full ball. On the second he dismissed Jos Buttler with a full ball. But Ishant bowled only four to five full deliveries in England's 157.2-over first innings. Either he had success with the full ball because it was a rare surprise or there is a case for him to bowl that length more often. I'm tempted to say he should bowl full more often - Ishant's height and high-arm action pushes the batsman back and a full ball is likely to cause more trouble.

Ishant and Umesh Yadav conceded only three boundaries in front of the stumps. With the lack of lateral movement and pace off the pitch, it is expected that a fair amount of runs will be scored in front of the stumps. The wagon-wheel, however, suggested that the Indian fast bowlers did not bowl lengths that brought batsmen forward.

The difference between Ashwin and Mishra
Amit Mishra and Ashwin bowl at a similar pace. Both have accurate pitch maps too. Why is it then, that Ashwin is vastly more effective than Mishra? The reason is fizz off the surface, which is a result of the extra rotations Ashwin puts on the ball. Mishra hasn't been able to put enough behind the ball and is therefore less effective. Without zip off the surface, Mishra is at his best when the batsmen are playing shots, and that explains his success in limited-over formats.

Openers let-off by Cook
The toughest assignment for opening batsmen is a seaming pitch on the first morning of a Test. The second toughest is opening after having fielded for 150 or more overs. Though conditions on the second day might not be as testing, the fatigue after fielding will challenge physical and mental strength. And there are only ten minutes in which to make the switch. Another thing you have to be wary of is believing the pitch is a featherbed because the other team has batted 150 overs. Every innings starts from scratch, so it was surprising to see the field set by Alastair Cook. For both KL Rahul, struggling for form, and Parthiv Patel, having kept wickets for 157.2 and a part-time opener, Cook had fielders at deep point and deep square leg. With 477 runs in the bank, Cook should have attacked more.