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After India were denied an opportunity to clinch victory in the first Test due to rain, it was time for action to shift from Nottingham to London. Despite the change in venue, the conditions were quite similar with a lot of cloud covering over Lord's. Joe Root won the all-important toss once again and as expected, he put India to bat first.
India's opening pair of KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma were least bothered by the conditions on Thursday as they looked quite comfortable against the English pacers. After surviving the tricky new-ball spell, Rohit Sharma started unleashing his attacking prowess as runs started to come for fun. As the visitors were running away with the game with score reading 121/0 in 41 overs, Root introduced James Anderson back into the attack to bowl with the old ball.
Anderson produces an unplayable delivery
James Anderson was struggling with thigh strain ahead of this match and only passed the fitness test on Thursday, earning him a spot in the final playing XI. English fans would be glad that their star pacer was playing at Lord's as he was probably the only bowler who could have dismissed Rohit Sharma on a day when the Indian opener was batting superbly.
In his second over of the new spell, Anderson bowled three dot deliveries to put some pressure on Hitman, who was batting on 83. After bowling an out-swinger, the right-arm pacer followed it up with a delivery that nipped back in as it struck the pads of Rohit Sharma before castling into the stumps. The Indian opener was certainly not ready for that and had no chance to play that delivery with the position he found himself in. His incredible knock had ended, courtesy Anderson's class!
Watch the video here:
Anderson brings England back into the game
The 39-year-old continued his impressive spell of bowling as he also went on to dismiss India's No. 3 - Cheteshwar Pujara - few overs later. With that wicket, Anderson scalped his 30th Test wicket at Lord's, becoming the leading wicket-taker at a particular venue in Test cricket. He overtook former Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, who had taken 29 wickets at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.