ENG Vs IND: Harry Brook's Century Hopes Dashed In Nightmare Exit On 99 In Headingley Test (WATCH)

England middle-order batter Harry Brook fell agonizingly short of his ninth Test century on Day 3 of the first Test of the five-match series against India at Headingley in Leeds on Sunday, June 22.

Harry Brook, who is often considered the product of 'Bazball', an ultra-aggressive approach adopted by the captain-coach duo of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, was in a brilliant form as he capitalized on the lapses committed by Team India, especially the no-ball by Jasprit Bumrah when he was on zero and dropped catches, building a commanding innings that frustrated the visitors and lifted England's hopes.

Brook walked in to bat after England were 206/3 after Joe Root's dismissal and remained unbeaten on 0 before the close of play on Day 2 of the Headingley Test. On Day 3, Harry Brook settled in quickly and played with authority, mixing caution with controlled aggression, while forming crucial partnerships with Jamie Smith and Chris Woakes.

Harry Brook's gritty knock ends in a nightmare

Harry Brook was at his fluent, adopting his usual aggressive approach while forming a 73-run stand for the fifth wicket with Jamie Smith (40), followed by a 39-run partnership with Chris Woakes to reduce England's deficit against India's first-innings total of 471.

These two partnerships allowed Harry Brook to keep England in the hunt and steadily chipped away at India's commanding first-innings total of 471. Apart from Jasprit Bumrah's no-ball blunder, Brook received another reprieve after Yashasvi Jaiswal dropped a straightforward catch at gully off Bumrah's bowling on the last ball of the 85th over, when he was batting on 85, allowing him to carry on his innings.

Brook's moment of scoring a century came in the 88th over and was just a run away from completing a three-figure mark. On the third ball of the ball, the 26-year-old attempted a big shot off Prasidh's short-pitched delivery, but miscued it as the ball hit top edge of his bat and flew straight to Shardul Thakur at short-leg. Harry Brook was about to celebrate, but ended up banging his head and covering his face with disappointment.

Much-needed breakthrough for #TeamIndia! 🔥#PrasidhKrishna grabs his third wicket of the Test, dismissing #HarryBrook on 99! 💥Will #TeamIndia's bowlers finish off the English tail in a flash? 👀#ENGvIND 1st Test Day 3 LIVE NOW Streaming on JioHotstar 👉... twitter/OMbTDbD90j

- Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) June 22, 2025

Harry Brook became the first batter in three years to be dismissed on 99 in Tests. The last batter to have been dismissed while batting on 99 was Australia's flamboyant batter Travis Head in the first Test against the West Indies in Perth in 2022.

Brook became the second England batter after Marcus Trescothick to have been dismissed on 99 against India in Tests, and the third player to be dismissed one run short of a century after Saleem Malik and Michael Atherton at Headingley.

England denied a first-innings lead over India's 471

After Harry Brook's dismissal at 398/7, Chris Woakes was joined by Brydon Carse at the crease to carry on England's first innings batting. Woakes took on Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj with his aggressive approach.

Woakes and Carse formed a 55-run stand for the eighth wicket until the latter was dismissed by Mohammed Siraj for 22 at 435/8. Thereafter, Chris Woakes' stay at the crease came to an end after he was dismissed for 38 by Jasprit Bumrah at 460/9. Shoaib Bashir joined Josh Tongue at the crease to take England past India's first innings total of 471.

However, England's hopes of overtaking India's first innings total were dashed after Bumrah bowled out Tongue at 465/10. Team India will resume their batting in the second innings with a lead of six runs.

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