India added 70 runs without loss on day three of the third Test with England to leave themselves 362 runs ahead with eight wickets remaining at lunch.

Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli continued their stand, each making unbeaten half-centuries as the tourists progressed to 194 for two in their second innings at Trent Bridge.

Pujara (56) inched the race to 50, although his – a first in 16 first-class innings since April – took 147 balls.

Kohli (54), with only five fours to his partner’s seven, was nonetheless operating at a much quicker tempo and reached his second 50 of the match in 82 balls.

England must therefore almost certainly ponder a national-record run chase, in defence of their 2-0 series lead.

The highest in their history dates back almost 90 years, to the 332 for seven they made in the 1928/29 Ashes in Melbourne.

England’s travails were compounded when wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow had to leave the field after taking a painful blow to the left hand as he went to gather a delivery from James Anderson.

He was then sent for an X-ray on the injury to his left middle finger.

Jos Buttler, who had just dropped a tough chance at second slip to reprieve Pujara on 40, took the gloves instead.

England were containing the run rate with disciplined bowling, but could not find a breakthrough.

Kohli played and missed several times, rather than edged; then, when Stuart Broad thought he had a chance of lbw on DRS, the India captain got a sliver of bat on ball before pad.