India and England played out a thrilling draw in Manchester on Sunday, July 27. The five-Test series is now primed for a blockbuster finish at The Oval. It ended on a feisty note with England skipper Ben Stokes urging Indian batters to shake hands, as only one result was possible in the game. But, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar refused Stokes' offer and went on to score their respective centuries.
The fans were quick to compare the Manchester Test with the opening Test of the 2016 series between both sides in Rajkot. The fixture saw England bat first and post a staggering 537-run total, with Stokes (128) emerging as the finest batter.
In response, India did well to score 488, with Murali Vijay (126) and Cheteshwar Pujara (124) scoring hundreds. Then, skipper Alastair Cook (130) helped England declare on 260/3 and set up a 310-run target for the Virat Kohli-led side with 50-55 overs left on Day 5.
The Indian team got off to a disappointing start, with the failures of Gautam Gambhir (0) and Cheteshwar Pujara (18). Although Murali Vijay (31) played well, he couldn't convert his start into a big knock. Soon after, Ajinkya Rahane (1) perished early as well.
Nevertheless, skipper Kohli joined hands with Ravichandran Ashwin (32) to form a match-saving 47-run partnership. The home side was on the verge of collapse when Wriddhiman Saha (9) was also dismissed.
But the pair of Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja (32*) played well to steer India to safety. Interestingly, Kohli was batting on 49* off 98 balls, when he decided to shake hands with Cook and the match ended in a stalemate. India finished on 172/6 in 52.3 overs, with Adil Rashid taking three wickets.
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Despite a draw in the first Test, India went on to win the remaining games and won the series 4-0. Virat Kohli was the top run-scorer in the series with 655 runs, while Ashwin bagged 28 wickets.
Gautam Gambhir slams Ben Stokes and Co. after an epic draw in ENG vs IND 4th Test
Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir fired back at England for forcing Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar to walk off the field, despite being so close to their landmarks.
As per Gambhir, England would have also carried on with their batting in a similar situation, and felt Jadeja and Sundar deserved hundreds for saving the game for the Indian team. Here's what he said in the post-match conference:
"If someone is batting on 90 and the other one is batting on 85, wouldn't they deserve a hundred? Would they have walked off if someone from England side would've been batting on 90 or 85? If someone has the opportunity to get his first Test hundred, wouldn't you allow him to do it? They weather the storm. It's up to them. If they want to play that way, that's up to them. I've got nothing more to say. I think both those guys deserve a hundred and fortunately they got it in the end."The fifth and final Test of the series will take place from July 31 to August 4 at The Oval.
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Edited by Srinjoy Sanyal