‘England have thrown some real punches to push them…’ – Former English star hits out at India ahead of 3rd Test

Former England cricketer Ian Bell takes a slight dig at Team India ahead of the third Test match against England, which is slated to take place on February 15 in Rajkot. Notably, the Ben Stokes-led England side was able to win the first Test match. However, Team India bounced back magnificently in the second Test match to level up the series by 1-1.

However, the former batting legend hit out at Team India while saying that they were quite confident about winning the series by 5-0 ahead of the series. The legendary cricketer feels that England has been the biggest worry for the Men in Blue, sharing the reality of the home team in the ongoing Test series.

“I suppose the Indian media was very confident that it was going to be 5-0 before the series started. No doubt that this India team is worried about this England side, which is great. I think England has thrown some real punches to push India back. It’s going to come down to again, someone like Ollie Pope did in that first game to get a big hundred, that’s really important to really put yourself in the game, but they look threatening,” Ian Bell said on Sky Sports Podcast.

I feel there will be a bit more pressure at the moment on India: Ian Bell

Ian Bell feels that Team India has a great batting line-up, but they still have doubts about their form. Moreover, the 41-year-old cricketer believes that Rohit Sharma and Co. are currently under too much pressure, and the England batter possesses the ability to thrash the hosts.

“I think the Indian lineup has got an amazing amount of talent, but again, there will be doubt there. Not that they don’t have the talent and ability, but I feel there will be a bit more pressure at the moment on India. But I think if someone can do what Ollie Pope did in the first Test, we can put pressure on India,” he added further.