England call on sold-out Lord’s crowd to roar them to victory

England have called on a sold-out “People’s Monday” crowd to roar them to victory with the third Test still in the balance after a fractious, thrilling fourth day.

India return to Lord’s on Monday needing 135 more runs, while England need six wickets after Brydon Carse and Ben Stokes picked up three scalps in a dramatic final half-hour with the crowd cheering on both sides vociferously.

Unusually, the final day has sold out in advance, and the England batting coach, Marcus Trescothick, one of the heroes of the great summer of 2005, called on the home crowd to get behind their team early on the final day.

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“We are desperate to win,” he said. “It’s going to be amazing. We’ve seen four amazing days of cricket and two games which have been well supported. That last hour, with the support and the energy around the ground was amazing. Everybody was invested. From an England point of view, that is brilliant. We love those situations where the crowd is really behind the team. Hopefully we get more tomorrow and push on to win the game.

“I think the last hour, our guys running in really well, there was an edge out there and it makes clear how important Test cricket is and creates a great spectacle for everyone to be involved in.

“We had momentum towards the end. With the new ball you hope you will get early wickets. We got an early one, then they had a partnership, but the buzz around the ground gave the boys the lift they needed, a couple of late wickets gives us hope that we are bang on the money.

“If we can create an atmosphere like that, it might take a wicket to get it like that or for Joe to wind them up again, but the support has been brilliant throughout. Both teams are really well supported and it’s great we have that. Of course, tomorrow will be no different, everyone loves their cricket, and we will have a full house where both sets of supporters get to see the finale of an amazing Test.”

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The series was sparked into life on the third evening when Shubman Gill and his team took issue with Zak Crawley’s flagrant time-wasting and there were plenty more flashpoints on day four. Mohammed Siraj can expect a visit from the match referee having given Ben Duckett a send-off after dismissing him early in England’s slide to 192 all out, which left India chasing just 193.

Early in their innings, both KL Rahul and the nightwatchman Akash Deep were sledged by England.

Trescothick said England had hoped to set a higher target of around 250, but did not take issue with any of India’s celebrations, and added that he believes the edge between the teams had added to the spectacle.

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“I think it helps,” he said. “Having that competitive edge from both teams, they are desperate to win, they want to fight for every wicket and run, every opportunity you get. There was a bit last night, a similar situation tonight. It makes more people watch the game which is a good thing. Both teams know there’s a line you can’t cross. It’s not really been troubled too much, and helps the atmosphere in the series.

“It’s definitely got more friendly because everyone is playing together in franchise cricket around the world. They are team-mates one week, now they are opposition fighting tooth and nail. Sometimes it’s good to create something within the game.”

The India all-rounder Washington Sundar, who took four wickets in the England collapse, predicted his team would “definitely” win, “just after lunch”.

Trescothick said England would have their spinner Shoaib Bashir available to bowl on the final day, but it appears increasingly unlikely that he will be eligible for selection in the fourth Test because of an injury to the little finger on his left hand. He batted, but did not take the field early in India’s chase.

The options to replace Bashir as England spinner

England have invested a lot in Bashir over the last 18 months, after choosing him over Jack Leach last summer. Against India, he has had a curious series, bowling 135 tidy overs but taking just nine wickets at 59.

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England could turn to the steady hand of Leach, but may also consider leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed or all-rounder Liam Dawson, who is back in the white-ball set-up but has not played Test cricket since 2017.

After the second Test at Edgbaston, coach Brendon McCullum ruled out Jacob Bethell being brought into the side on the basis of his left-arm spin, saying he was competing for a place only as a batsman in the top seven. Perhaps that could change this week.

Jack Leach

Leach is a veteran of 39 Tests, who was unfortunate to drop out of the team last year after picking up an injury on the tour of India. Is a favourite of the captain, Ben Stokes, is loved by fans, and knows the team environment well. Would be the most straightforward replacement for his Somerset team-mate.

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Liam Dawson

England have resisted picking Dawson for the first three years of the Bazball regime, despite his brilliant returns at domestic level. He provides very solid left-arm spin, and is a fine batsman who would slot into this team at No 8. With Chris Woakes below his best, that might be an attractive option. Not played Test cricket since 2017, but he has returned to the white-ball set-up under McCullum with success in recent months.

Rehan Ahmed

England love Ahmed and his crackerjack younger brother Farhan. Wrist-spin would add an attacking dimension to the team, but the problem is that he is simply not bowling much for Leicestershire. His batting has come on masses, though, since moving to No 3 earlier this year.

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No spinner

England could add another seamer to their attack, and rely on Joe Root’s spin. But that goes against Stokes’s belief that you should always have a specialist spinner in your team, and makes little sense as a hot summer drags on, especially given the pitches at Old Trafford.