10165  first-class runs at an average of 47.94, 5581 List-A runs at an average of 42.28, and after a career over two decades for Bengal, Manoj Tiwary will be bidding adieu to cricket after the final match at Eden Gardens against Bihar. Manoj played in 12 ODIs and three T20Is - between 2008 and 2015 and was also part of the ICC T20 World Cup 2012 team but did not get a single game to play. 

A Kevin Pietersen fan, Manoj had moulded his game as an aggressive middle-order batter but due to a series his misfortune never got to the level he deserved. Tiwary made his first-class debut for Bengal in 2004 at Eden Gardens and soon made a name for himself. He rose to fame in the 2006-07 Ranji Trophy season when he broke some Bengal records and scored 796 runs at an average of 99.50.

Post this remarkable season, he was named in the Indian squad touring Bangladesh under captain Rahul Dravid. The then-21-year-old Manoj Tiwary was all set to make his debut in Mirpur in the first but unfortunately injured his shoulder on the eve of the match and could not make his debut in that series.

He finally made his debut one year later in Brisbane, a ground famous for another fellow Bengali Sourav Gnaguly's iconic inning. But a jetlagged Manoj could not get the better of a scorching yorker from Brett Lee and had to wait for three years for his next international match.

Despite another few great seasons with the bat for Bengal, Manoj had to wait till 2011 to play his second ODI game in West Indies. This time he was asked to replace an under-performing Shikhar Dhawan. Though he had never opened in his first-class career till then, Manoj agreed to open and could only manage to score 2 in the first game. But, he looked good for his run-a-ball 22 in the last match of the series when he was pushed down the order and played in his favourite middle-order position.

Also Read: Bengal Cricket: A tale of gloomy future and lack of actions

Tiwary would be given another chance in India's tour to England to replace Rohit Sharma and was dropped after just playing one game in the second ODI in Southampton. Tiwary batted at number seven position and scored 11 from 7 in a 23-over game due to rain.

His next match would be at his favourite Eden Gardens in the 5th ODI against the touring England team. Tiwary batted at number four and scored a 30-ball to 24 before perishing against Stuart Meaker. A few days later, he made his T20I debut in the one-off T20I games against England at Eden Gardens.

In every series, Manoj had to wait for someone to get injured or till the last match of the series to get his chance to play. He was never trusted with back-to-back games that players like Kohli, Rohit or others got during that period. Yes, it was evident that he had some stiff competition within the team, but never got the trust from the team management to get a long shot at the international level.

Manoj's time for glory finally came when he scored his first and only ODI century against the touring West Indies team in Chennai. In the last game of the series, Manoj scored an unbeaten 104 in 126 balls under tough humid conditions and had to retire hurt after scoring his ton.

However, despite scoring a ton, he was mysteriously benched for months and was not selected in the final eleven until the 4th ODI against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka in 2012. Tiwary this time showed his all-round skill and was the pick of the bowler with 4 wickets and scored 21 runs in the second inning in a match famous for Virat Kohli's unbeaten 128 from 119 balls.

In the next match, Manoj scored a good 65 from 68 balls and helped India put 294 in the first inning. He was then named in the ICC T20 World Cup 2012 where he did not play a single game.

Post that, a few injuries kept on troubling him over the next two domestic seasons and he returned to the Bengal team after an 8-month layoff in the 2013-14 Vijay Hazare Trophy. After taking Bengal to the semi-final of the tournament, Manoj was again recalled for India's tour to Bangladesh in 2014. He was again selected for the one and final game of the series despite India sending a second-string team.

Manoj then played his last and final ODIs for India in India's tour to Zimbabwe and for the first time in a series, he played all the games of the series. However, after a string of low scores in those three games, Manoj was dropped from the team and never was recalled again despite performing well in the domestic circuit.

Manoj was successful in the Indian Premier League as well. He was one of the backbone of KKR's middle order that won the 2012 IPL. He hit the winning runs for KKR to lift the trophy. He played for four teams in the IPL. He scored his only first-class triple century in the 2019-20 Ranji Trophy season in Kalyani.

As after 147 first-class games he is set to hang his boots, we all can conclude that, with more support, and fewer injuries in important times he could have been one of the stars of the Indian team. Yes, competition with Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and others in the middle order for India made it tough for him as well. But, he was never given a long run to settle in the team. He is one of the unluckiest batters to never get the test cap as well despite scoring tons of runs in the domestic circuit.

Off-the field, Manoj was very vocal and never shied away from speaking his heart out. He used to back that up with tons of runs as well in every season. He had his presence and aura whenever he donned that Bengal jersey and Bengal fans had nicknamed him chhota dada (in reference to Sourav Ganguly's nickname, dada).

The Nation England has produced some extraordinary Batsmen in Cricket. They have impressed Cricket fans from all over the world with their achievements and glory. The test is considered the Best Format in Cricket. England has & had some players who are the best among many in the world of Test Cricket. Sir Jack Hobbs is considered the Best Test Batsman for England in Tests. He has scored 5410 runs in just 102 innings with 15 centuries and 28 half-centuries.

In recent times of greats, Joe Root has proven himself one of the greatest if not the greatest for England in Test Format as he has every right due to his achievements. Now, Let's give a look at the list of the Top 5 Batsmen with the most test centuries for England.

Read Also: Most International Hundreds among Active Players

Top 5 Batsmen with the Most Test Centuries for England:

1. Joe Root | 37 Centuries

England batter Joe Root has written his name in the history books for England in Test Format by bringing up his 37th Test hundred on the second day of the third Test between England and India at Lord’s. It was also his third consecutive Test century at the venue. Moreover, he also overtook Graham Gooch as the highest run-scorer at Lord's in international cricket. 

Root made his debut in 2012 against team India and since then he has played 156* test matches. He has scored 13,219 runs with an average of 50.84.

2. Alastair Cook | 33 Centuries

Alastair Cook was one of the greats in Test Cricket of his generation. He made his debut against India in 2006 for the national team in Test Cricket. Cook played 161 Test matches in which he batted 291 innings. He scored 12,472 runs with an average of 45.35. His highest score was 294 and he made 33 centuries and 57 half-centuries for his team. Cook played his last Test Match against India in 2018.

3. Kevin Pietersen | 23 Centuries

Kevin Pietersen has proved himself across every format for England. He made his Test debut in 2005 against the Australian side at Lords. Pietersen played 104 test matches, in which he scored 8181 runs with an average of 47.29. He played his last test match against Australia in 2014. Kevin Pietersen is third on the list with 23 Centuries.

4. Wally Hammond | 22 Centuries

The judgment of cricket history is that the greatest batsmen the game has known are - WG Grace, Jack Hobbs, Walter Hammond, and Don Bradman. Others may come close indeed to those four but do not quite take place with them. Hammond made his test debut against South Africa in 1927. He played 85 test matches and scored 7249 runs with an average of 58.45. He is 4th on the list with 22 test centuries. The Great Walter Hammond played his last Test match against New Zealand in 1947.

5. Colin Cowdrey | 22 Centuries

Colin Cowdrey mostly known as Michael Cowdrey played Cricket for 21 years, One of the most durable batsmen in the history of Test Cricket. Cowdrey made his test debut in 1954 against the Aussies and played 114 matches, scoring 7624 runs with an average of 44.06. He is 5th on the list with the same no as Wally Hammond, 22 centuries. Michael Cowdrey played his last test match in 1975 against the Australian side.

Top 10 Players with the Most Centuries in Test Cricket for England:

At just 3.02 runs per over, an unlikely England under captain Ben Stokes and coach Brandon McCullum were seen on Day 1 of India vs England 3rd Test at Lord's. Even Shubman Gill's taunting "boring Test cricket" comment could not bring the BazBall of the England cricket team.

England finished Day 1 with 251/4 as Joe Root remained on 99 along with a struggling yet effective Ben Stokes on 39 from 102 balls at the other end. 

Indian bowlers did pretty well to restrict English batters and bowled with discipline, except for Akash Deep, who went for 4.41 runs per over on Day 1.

Key Moments and Highlights of Day 1 of India vs England 3rd Test

After the defeat at Edgbaston, England wanted a pitch that had "something in it." However, it did not look like that on Day 1. The pitch looked dry and slow, which might favour India as every day progresses. 

Ben Stokes won the toss and decided to bat first, which is very unlikely of them as they always want to chase scores in the fourth innings. But, with the dry and slow pitch in action, it might be good to bat in the third inning, rather than batting in the last inning. 

Indian opening bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Akash Deep did well, and it did not look like Akash Deep, who was coming from a historical 10-wicket haul, had any issues with the slope of Lord's. Oh, did I forget to mention that India had one change from Edgbaston - Jasprit Bumrah in place of Prasidh Krishna. 

Read Also | Joe Root vs Sachin Tendulkar – Test Stats Compared: Can Root break Sachin's record

Nitish Kumar Reddy provided the early wickets for India

Despite a good start and a long spell from Bumrah, India had to wait till Nitish Kumar Reddy came into the bowling and struck twice in his first over to remove both the English openers. Ben Duckett (23) would consider himself unlucky to be caught down the leg side, while Zack Crawley (18) got a "spitting cobra" delivery from Reddy. 

Ollie Pope would have been out first ball if Shubman Gill had caught a tough chance in the gully. But, from then on, the signals were in. The edges were not reaching the slips, and Gill once had to come so close that he wore a helmet. 

The first session ended with England being on 83/2 after 25 overs.

Nitish Kumar Reddy with a double wicket over for India! pic.twitter.com/3bMnMgqRHd

— Sportz Point (@sportz_point) July 10, 2025

England won the second session

Though Pope struggled to get going, on the other end, Joe Root was Joe Root - buying runs ball by ball, playing the way he does. Gill tried to break the partnership between Pope and Root with Bumrah in action, but that did not happen.

Meanwhile, India suffered a setback as Rishabh Pant got injured while grabbing a ball from Bumrah and had to be replaced by substitute keeper Dhruv Jurel. 

The second session saw 70 runs without losing any wickets. 

Read Also | Most Hundreds in Test cricket among active players

Bumrah and Jadeja provided breakthroughs for India

For India, the breakthrough finally came in the first over of the third season as Ravindra Jadeja produced an outside of Pope (44) and Jurel caught it beautifully to get England's third. Pope and Root had a 109-run partnership, which balanced the first session of the day.

Soon, Bumrah was called into action, and he rattled the stumps of Harry Brook, and everyone thought that Gill and company would have the doors open for a collapse. 

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐚𝐬𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐭 𝐁𝐮𝐦𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 \|/

Jasprit Bumrah cleaned up Harry Brook's stumps for England's fourth wicket of the first inning. #JaspritBumrah #HarryBrook #ENGvsIND pic.twitter.com/PnV9dkswrv

— Sportz Point (@sportz_point) July 10, 2025

Stokes plays through pain; Root closer to another ton

However, captain Ben Stokes, who has not scored a test century in the last two years, played an uncharacteristic inning to build an unbeaten 79-run partnership with Root. 

Nitish Kumar Reddy nearly had Stokes out, but the DRS showed that India had to be satisfied with the Umpire's call, which was not out. Root meantime looked flawless against pace and spin.

In the final hour of the day, Stokes struggled with a groin injury and could not run, which stopped the flow of the run as well. With Joe Root on 99, and looking for his 37th test ton and 8th at Lord's, we are set for a big day tomorrow. 

Day 1 score summary

Rishabh Pant went off the field after a stinging blow to his fingers during Day 1 of ENG vs IND, Third test at Lord's. Dhruv Jurel took the gloves as a substitute wicketkeeper.

Pant got hit on the fingers 

During the second session on Day 1, Jasprit Bumrah sprayed one down the leg side. It hit Pant's fingers as he stuck his left hand out to try and stop it.

The ball went down to fine leg for a couple of byes, but Pant needed some treatment. He was clearly struggling as he got his finger taped up.

Dhruv Jurel came in as a substitute wicket-keeper

Despite the pain, Pant tried to keep for another five balls, but it was evident he was in pain. Dhruv Jurel, who kept in the three Tests against England in India, was called to replace Pant. 

Jurel also kept during the India A games against England Lions, just before the series. 

England started slow and steady

Earlier, England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and decided to bat first at Lord's. England had announced their playing XI on the eve of the game, while for India, Jasprit Bumrah replaced Prasidh Krishna in the Indian playing lineup. 

Indian bowlers started well but were a bit unlucky in the first session. A few played and missed while a few knicks dropped short as well. However, it was Nitish Kumar Reddy who got the openers Ben Duckett and Zack Crawley in his first over to give India their first breakthrough. 

But Ollie Pope and Joe Root steadied the ship for England. Although the innings from both of them were a bit slow, England made sure they played the whole second session without losing a wicket. They scored England's second-slowest partnership worth 50 or more in the Stokes-McCullum era.

Meanwhile, Joe Root, who scored his 103 fifty-plus score of his test career, also became the first man to score 3,000 runs against India in Test cricket. 

The Indian Women's Cricket team registered their first-ever T20I series win on English soil, after taking an insurmountable lead of 3-1 in the five-match series. In the fourth match of the series, the Women in Blue defeated England by 6 wickets with 18 balls to go to seal the series in Manchester.

Indian spinners set up the game for them. Tammy Beaumont's decision to bat first was struck by the Indian spin trio of Shree Charani, Deepti Sharma and Radha Yadav. England could only reach 126/7 in the first inning, which India chased down easily. 

What happened in the match? 

India were chasing history after winning the first two games of the series. But England, one of the strongest teams in the world, looked in form after winning the last game. 

However, Indian bowlers struck early, and Harmanpreet Kaur's plan to keep rotating the bowlers worked very well. Amanjot Kaur, Shree Charani, Deepti Sharma, and Arundhati Reddy all bowled one over each in the first four overs. 

Shree was able to get the wicket of Danni Wyatt-Hodge (5) in the third over, while Sophia Dunkley (22) was dismissed by Deepti in the final over of the powerplay. 

After the first two wickets, Tammy Beaumont and Alice Capsey tried to build a partnership for England. But once Radha Yadav got rid of the English captain in the 11th over, it was all about India after that. 

Sophie Ecclestone, at the end, added a quick 16 from 10 balls to take England to 126/7 in the first inning. Radha Yadav with 4-15-2 was the pick of the bowlers for India. Shree Charani also picked up two wickets for 30 for the Indian team.

During the chase, Shafali Varma gave India a flying start with her 31 from 19 balls. Although Smriti Mandhana (32) was dismissed soon after that, Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur (26), along with Jemimah Rodrigues, built a 48-run partnership to take India close to the total. 

Eventually India won the match by 6 wickets with 18 balls remaining as Jemimah (24*) hit the winning runs for them. 

Radha Yadav was named the player of the match. 

Why is the ENG-W vs IND-W series win important?

The ENG-1 vs IND-W series was a stage rehearsal for the Indian Women's Cricket team as they will look to win their first-ever T20I World Cup next year in England.

So, the memories of winning their maiden T20 series here would definitely give them confidence when they come back to England next year. 

A day before the third match of the ENG vs IND Test series, the England cricket team unveiled its playing XI for the historic match to be held at Lord's.

After the crushing defeat in the Edgbaston Test against Team India, the England cricket team is looking quite restless and troubled. After such a bad defeat at home, Ben Stokes' team is hoping to take the lead in the series again.

Also Read: ENG vs IND Test at Lord's: Every result from India vs England test at Lord's

Archer made a comeback after 4 years

For this, captain Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum have made a big decision. England has announced the playing XI for the ENG vs IND third match of the Test series starting on Thursday, July 10 at Lord's, and one change has been made in it. After a gap of 4 years, star fast bowler Jofra Archer returned to the Test playing 11.

After the defeat in the Edgbaston Test, it was believed that there would be a change in the playing XI, but there was curiosity about which player would return. Apart from Archer, England also had the option of Gus Atkinson. While Archer was returning to Test cricket after a long time, Atkinson was injured in the month of May and was recalled to the squad only for the Lord's Test.

The pair of Stokes and McCullum decided to give preference to Archer's fast speed and ability to get bounce for this test. With this, Archer is making a comeback in Test cricket after about 4 years and 5 months. Coincidentally, his last Test match was also against Team India, when he was part of the Ahmedabad Test in February 2021.

Tongue out of the Playing XI

The surprising thing is that the bowler in whose place Archer was selected in the playing XI has taken the most wickets in the ENG vs IND series so far. The English team has decided to exclude young pacer Josh Tongue from the Lord's Test.

Tongue has taken the most wickets in this series so far, 11. However, one reason for this is his lack of control over line length, due to which he was proving to be quite expensive.

Also Read: Exclusive: "Watch out for him," Shreevats Goswami's statement for Akash Deep in 2020 is proving right now

ENG vs IND 3rd Test at Lord's: England Playing XI 

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir.