Anything about 250 would be good for our bowlers to bowl at: Cheteshwar Pujara
The Indian team dominated the entire Day 3 of the fourth Test against England at the Oval, thanks to cheteshwar-pujara" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma. Their partnership of 153 runs has left the home side needing something special to avoid defeat in this game.
India already built a healthy opening stand of 83 in the second innings, responding to the deficit of 99. Following KL Rahul's departure, Pujara and Rohit Sharma added a further 153 runs in batting-friendly conditions.
Sharma scored his first overseas Test ton, while Cheteshwar Pujara made an enterprising 61. When asked what target India aim to set for England in the fourth innings, Pujara felt anything about 250 should make them comfortable.
The Saurashtra batsman backs the visitors' bowling unit to defend that but thinks a greater number is on the cards.
"Anything about 250 would be good for our bowlers to bowl at. With our batting line-up, Virat still batting, Jadeja is batting well. So, I'm sure we can put more than 300 or 350 plus, which will be a very good total to defend in the fourth innings," Pujara told Sky Sports.
India's lead is currently at 171 with seven wickets in hand
With the match slipping out of England's grasp, Ollie Robinson gave them hope by striking twice with the second new ball immediately. He removed Pujara and Sharma for 61 and 127, respectively, as England aimed to trigger another collapse.
However, skipper Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja prevented it by overcoming some early jitters. The pair have already threaded an unbroken stand of 33 in 11 overs and might look to add some quick runs on Day 4.
The English bowlers must make some quick incisions with control on Day 4 to stand a chance of coming back into the game. So far, their bowlers have proved slightly toothless, while the dropped catches haven't helped either.