Ben Stokes dismisses Virat Kohli for a duck as England battle back against India

Ben Stokes let his bowling do the talking as he got the best of Virat Kohli and helped England fight back on the second morning of the fourth Test.

Responding to England’s 205 all out, the hosts struggled to 80 for four at lunch, with a disciplined bowling display making life difficult for India.

Stokes and Kohli were involved in a heated exchange while the former was batting on day one in Ahmedabad and the battle continued when Kohli was dismissed for a duck by a steepling short ball.

All-rounder Stokes was asked to step up as second seamer due to England’s batsman-heavy team selection and, despite suffering from illness over the past 48 hours, he dug deep to send down 10 draining overs in fierce heat.

He conceded just 16 in a fine spell that was only broken for a change of ends and landed the big prize when he surprised the newly-arrived Kohli with one that reared up at shoulder height and grazed the edge.

Stokes had been used sparingly in the first three Tests but, having been promoted to second seamer in a batsman-heavy team, he stepped up for his side.

Jack Leach was responsible for bringing the India captain to the crease, capitalising on a disciplined start by getting the better of Cheteshwar Pujara.

The slow left-armer has posed problems for the number three all series and nagged away until the right-hander got his timings wrong, playing behind his front pad to fall lbw for 17.

Fellow opener Rohit Sharma continued his good form at the other end, moving to 32 not out at a gentler pace than usual, but James Anderson removed a slightly frenetic Ajinkya Rahane for 27 in the final over before the break.

Having sent down eight maidens from his first 10 overs in the match, Anderson was called back to make use of the swinging ball. He worked Rahane over by taking the ball in and out and then pounced, taking the edge with a hint of away swing and seeing Stokes dive to clutch the slip catch.

That left him with remarkable figures of two for seven from 11.5 overs and England with a foothold in the game.