Former cricketer and renowned broadcaster Jonathan Philip Agnew, also known as Aggers, lost a three-and-a-half-year-old bet to England captain Ben Stokes after England’s exciting 22-run victory over India in the third Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy at Lord’s on Monday, July 14.
The bet, made during the 2022 Ashes day-night Test in Hobart, was on Jofra Archer’s Test future.
Agnew boldly informed Stokes that Jofra Archer will not play another Test match.
However, the 30-year-old pacer proved him wrong by making a strong recovery in the Lord’s Test against India, when he took two wickets in the first innings and three in the second, contributing significantly to England’s close 22-run victory.
As part of the losing bet, Aggers handed over his legendary hat to Stokes during the Day 1 toss interview. In a funny twist, Archer wore the hat and performed the post-match interview with Agnew on Day 5, which instantly became a light-hearted highlight around the cricketing globe.
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Speaking of the game, England posted 387 in their first innings, led by a brilliant century from Joe Root (104). Jasprit Bumrah stood out for India, claiming a five-wicket haul. In response, India matched England’s total of 387 thanks to KL Rahul’s composed century. England’s second innings saw them collapse for 192, with Washington Sundar picking up four wickets. Remarkably, seven of England’s batters were bowled by the Indian attack.
India were bowled out for 170 on a difficult Day 5 pitch at Lord’s. Despite the conditions, Ravindra Jadeja scored an unbeaten 61 off 181 balls, creating crucial lower-order partnerships with Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj. However, England’s bowling proved too powerful in the end.
England now leads the five-match series 2-1. The fourth Test is set to begin on July 23 at Old Trafford in Manchester. While England hopes to win the series, India hopes to draw level at 2-2.
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