After registering convincing victories in the first two matches of the ongoing five-match Test series against India at Edgbaston and Lord’s, England suffered a huge loss of 203 runs in the Nottingham Test. The fourth and penultimate Test of the series at The Ageas Bowl in Southampton is currently taking place and the Three Lions find themselves in a tricky position after getting bundled out for just 246 on Day1.

On the first day, the Indian bowlers reduced the hosts’ batsmen to 86/6 in 34.4 overs. However, the lower order batsmen Sam Curran and Moeen Ali lifted their team to 246. In India’s innings, Stuart Broad picked up a couple of wickets, but India crossed the 100-run mark with Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper, accomplishing 6,000 runs in his 70th Test match on Day 2 before getting out on an individual score of 46.

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Meanwhile, Nasser Hussain, the former English skipper, reckons that Tamil Nadu-born off-break bowler Ravichandran Ashwin will play a crucial role for India if they manage to take a substantial lead. He mentioned that track can be dry underneath, a reason why the ground-staff left grass on the strip.

During a show on Sky Sports, Hussain said, “Usually it takes quite a while for it to go from a pitch that is seaming and swinging to a pitch that is turning; this has gone from one to the other very quickly – mainly from the footholds. But this is day two – so you can see why the groundsman left a bit of grass on it yesterday because it must be dry underneath. So the key is first-innings runs. If India get a lead, Ashwin becomes a massive threat.”

Ashwin’s participation in the Southampton Test wasn’t confirmed owing to the hip injury he developed during the Trent Bridge Test, but he eventually was drafted in, much to India’s relief. In the first innings, he picked two crucial wickets of Moeen Ali and Sam Curran.