Cook fails to get hundred in final Test as India reduce England to 198/7 on Day 1
London, Sep 7: Alastair Cook missed a century as England threw away a decent start to huff and puff their way to 198/7 and Indian bowlers came up with a captivating Day 1 performance in the fifth Test here on Friday.
Former England skipper Cook, who called time on his illustrious career before the final rubber, top-scored for the hosts with a patient 71 off 190 balls before he was removed by Jasprit Bumrah. Joe Root had won the toss and elected to bat first.
Moeen Ali got to a 50 as well but India came roaring back in the third session after struggling to get wickets in the first two, to reduce England to 198 from 133/2 at one stage.
Pace spearhead Ishant Sharma returned best figures of 3/28, while Ravindra Jadeja -- playing his first match of the series -- and Bumrah grabbed two wickets each conceding 57 and 41 runs, respectively.
At stumps, Jos Buttler (11 batting) and Adil Rashid (4 batting) were at the crease.
Brief scores: England 1st innings 198/7 (Alastair Cook 71, Moeen Ali 50; Ishant Sharma 3/28, Jasprit Bumrah 2/41, R. Jadeja 2/57)
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Brazil's Ancelotti raises doubts about whether Neymar will reach the 2026 World Cup
Sao Paulo (AP): Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti raised doubts about whether Neymar will be in his squad for the 2026 World Cup. The Italian has yet to pick the former captain since he took over in May.
“If Neymar deserves to be (in the squad), if he is, well, better than others, he will play in the World Cup and that's it. (But) I don't have debts to anyone,” Ancelotti said at a press conference in Washington on Friday following the draw.
Brazil is in Group C with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland.
“If we speak about Neymar, we have to speak about other players,” Ancelotti added. “We have to think about Brazil with or without Neymar, with or without other players. Our final list we will make after the FIFA fixtures in March.”
The 33-year-old Neymar has never fully recovered from a torn ACL in October 2023 during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay. But he's been key for Santos in its fight to avoid relegation in the Brazilian championship.
On Wednesday, he scored a hat trick for Santos despite a muscular injury. He is expected to play again on Sunday against Cruzeiro.
Ancelotti said Brazil does not have a “referential player” at the moment, a tag for the most valuable player that Neymar has mainly worn since the 2014 home World Cup.
“We have one of the world's best goalkeepers, some of the best defenders, top midfielders and some players up front. I don't want players who want to be the best in the world, I want players who want to win the World Cup,” Ancelotti said.
Asked about his team's group, Ancelotti said Brazil can top it.
“We can win all three matches, our idea is very clear. We need to be competitive during the entire World Cup. Our goal is to play in the final and for that to happen you need to face very strong teams anyway.”
Brazil won the last of its five World Cup trophies in 2002.
_vb_69.jpeg)
