Key Points

A magnificent innings from Joe Root and his partnerships with Ollie Pope and skipper Ben Stokes helped England dominate the first day of play against India in the third Test at Lord's on Thursday.

At the end of the day's play following the third session, England was 251/4, with Root (99*) and skipper Stokes (39*) unbeaten

Even though England managed to dominate a large chunk of day 1 of the third test against India by resorting to a traditional and slower-scoring method, it was Nitish (2/46 in 14 overs), who rattled them with early wickets and left them reeling at 44/2 during the first session.

"I thought he did quite well in Australia -- got a hundred with the bat and bowled decently, even if he didn't take many wickets. What you need from someone like him is to break partnerships and give the fast bowlers a breather while still maintaining control. He bowled nearly 14 overs in a spell -- that shows fitness and control. He's young, he's a capable batter with a century under his belt, and he's a sharp fielder. India should persist with him and avoid the temptation to chop and change," JioHotstar expert Anil Kumble said on 'Match Centre Live'.

Kumble felt surprised Ravindra Jadeja didn't continue bowling to Ben Stokes and changed ends instead after taking the wicket of Olie Pope. He also praised Indian bowlers and said they bowled really good areas consistently, that's one of the reasons Men in blue managed to restrict England to 251.

"It was evident right from the start that it was going to be a grind for the batters. The openers struggled to score off the new ball, and this was the kind of pitch where you had to work hard for your runs. I thought the Indian bowlers bowled really good areas consistently -- that's one of the reasons India managed to restrict England to 251. England will be fairly satisfied with just four wickets down. I do think India missed a trick after Jadeja got that breakthrough -- I was surprised he didn't continue bowling to Ben Stokes and changed ends instead. India will probably reflect tonight and feel that one or two more wickets could have put the match firmly in their favour. As it stands, it's evenly poised," he added.

After a balanced first session, which saw Nitish Kumar Reddy strike twice, England largely dominated the next two with more traditional Test cricket as compared to their attacking 'Bazball' cricket, despite strikes from Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah.

Brief scores: England: 251/4 (Joe Root 99*, Ollie Pope 44; Nitish Kumar Reddy 2/46) vs India.

- ANI