Second Test, Day 4: England Bowlers Send India's Top Order Back to Pavilion

Mark Wood beat openers KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma with his pace, Sam Curran exposed Kohli's weakness outside off.

Mark Wood celebrates with his teammates after dismissing India opener KL Rahul.

Image: PTI

Mark Wood's pace was too good for the Indian openers, KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma, as he managed to send both men back to the pavilion before India could take the lead on Day Four of the second Test match against England at Lord's.

Sam Curran exposed captain Virat Kohli weakness outside the off-stump, as England dominated the first session.

With a lead of 29 runs, India went to lunch on Day Four at 56-3, with two out-of-form batsmen, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, at the crease.

Ollie Robinson started off well and managed to beat Sharma outside off on multiple occasions, while James Anderson kept troubling Rahul with bounce and his in-swingers.

It was Wood who drew first blood, though. Rather than let the ball travel to the wicketkeeper, something he has done so beautifully in the series, Rahul decided to have a go at Wood's 90mph short of a length delivery and nicked it to the wicketkeeper, Jos Buttler.

Soon, Sharma, who hit two beautiful boundaries earlier, levelled the scores in style with a pull shot off a 90mph delivery by Wood that went beyond the ropes for a flat-six. However, Wood did not have to wait much and soon got his revenge. Sharma went for the hook shot on another short delivery but was beaten by pace as the ball was straighter this time around and did not give Sharma much room to swing through the shot. The ball, hitting the toe end of the bat, went straight into the hands of Moeen Ali, fielding at deep square leg.

Coming in to bat, an out of form Pujara had a few anxious moments at the crease. The unsettled batsman nicked one to the slips but got lucky as the ball fell short. The very next delivery by Anderson, too, fell short of short leg.

Meanwhile, captain Virat Kohli gave India the lead with his trademark cover drive, smashing Wood's 147kph delivery to the covers for four. He quickly moved to 20, hitting Robinson for two boundaries in his fifth over.

Sam Curran, however, managed to trouble Kohli a bit, with his in-swinger hitting the Indian captain's pad. England's review, however, showed the ball would have gone over the stumps. Aware of Kohli's weakness outside the off stump, Curran threw an angled delivery outside off in the very first ball of his next over. Kohli, expecting the ball to come in, went to defend it but edged it to Buttler.