Harry Brook struck a century potentially a century before throwing his bat and his counter to leave Joe Root in charge of finishing another remarkable pursuit during the fifth test against India.
Faced with an imposing objective of 374, the pair of Yorkshire met under 106 for three for three and produced an incredibly dominant partnership which brought them to 317 for four to tea.
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A demoralized India was about to throw in the towel when Brook was swayed so hard in search of a third successive limit off Akash deeply he sent his bat rooted in the air like a simple loop taking halfway.
He left for 111 but Root was imperative when he reached the break on 98 and not alongside Jacob Bethell. 57 other points will seal a 3-1 home victory and will ensure the new Anderson-Tendulkar trophy to head to Lord.
Mohammed Siraj has changed a chance to change the game when Brook skied a fine leg socket with only 19 in his name, but, although he held the opportunity, the designer walked on the border, then wore the ball for six.
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Fans of England celebrated deliriously while an amazed Siraj achieved what he had done, while Brook never looked back. He finished his 10th attempt at a hundred in 91 balls, his first in a quest for fourth round, and struck the lion’s share in a position of 195.
If the hosts exceed the line, he will finish a triplet of astonishing projects against India in the last three years, after his record of 378 for three in Edgbaston in 2022 and 373 for five in Headingley in the first match of this series.
They would also establish a new record prosecution at Surrey’s home, breaking the best of 263 previous in 1902.
Mohammed Siraj reacts after catching Harry Brook but carrying the ball on the limit of six (Ben Whitley / PA)
Siraj had entered the momentum with the last act on Saturday evening, Bowling Zak Crawley with a clinical yorker, India took a promising start by removing Ben Duckett (54) and Ollie Pope (27) during the morning session.
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Duckett converted his night 34 into a fourth half-century of the series, but played and missed several times when he struggled against Siraj, finally hindering Prasidh Krishna in the second shift.
Krishna, filling considerable Bumrah restaurant boots, has desperately overlooking Root LBW for only three, but saw his huge rejected attraction. Follow -up of the ball has shown that it was cut the stump, but that would not have been enough to cancel the decision.
After an hour of play, England had scratched 37 points, briefly accelerating while Pope struck three to four in an overtaking of Krishna, including one elegant.
But it was the end of a cameo rather than the beginning of something more substantial, Siraj loading and nailing it in front of the strains.
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At 106 for three, India had taken control, but Brook’s arrival brought a screaming speed change. He opted for total assault, at one point, launching 27 points in eight bullets.
Harry Brook came out in a counterattack manner (Ben Whitley / PA)
This included a crunch through midwickket and a sumptuous six covered themselves deeply before its quasi-failure at the rear, risking its counter but picking up six others for its efforts. Siraj looked mortified, English fans reveling in his anxiety. Krishna, on the other hand, had to quietly put the celebrations he had already started to play.
The wheels fell from India’s cart in the afternoon, while a combination of defensive fields, passive captain and tired bodies left them for less answers. Brook and Root ruthlessly milked the situation, marking a constant flow of those and two and waiting for the chance to hit the four.
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A RAGUD print of Ravirand Jadeja and a bad field of clumsiness of Deep, which kicked the ball on the strings after refusing to use his hands, suggested that the game was in place while the required races fell in double.
Brook sought to accelerate after reaching a hundred well deserved, unleashed deeply for the consecutive four before leaving while his bat was flying with his hands.
Bethell was lucky to escape one and to fold on one, sliding deeply while turning, but Root finished the session in full control while he was moving in both of his century.
