Carse's magic gives England chance to pull off miracle win

BOWLERS TO RESCUE AFTER BATSMEN FAIL

- By Mike Walters

BRYDON CARSE came charging down the slope to give England hope of another Bazball miracle at Lord's.

And then Ben Stokes uprooted nightwatchman Akash Deep's off-stump to rattle India in this barmy, barnstorming, bad-tempered third Test.

For much of a bleak sabbath, Stokes was staring down the barrel after 12 of England's 20 wickets to fall in the match were clean bowled - the most scattered timber at a Test in this country.

But as India were set a modest 193 to win, pace bowler Carse pinned skipper Shubman Gill and Karun Nair lbw in a fiery spell towards sunset before Stokes struck at the death to leave them 58-4, still needing another 135 on the final day to go 2-1 up in the series.

To season the pot, in a mirror image of Saturday night's feisty climax, Deep had resorted to blatant timewasting after surviving Carse's twilight rampage. A fat lot of good it did him - and now it is anyone's guess who will have the last laugh.