London: At lunch on Day 4 in the fourth Test, Team India stared at a heavy defeat as they stumbled to 1/2 after having conceded a first-innings lead of 311 runs. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharshan were back in the pavilion in the first over without a run on the board.
Experienced opener KL Rahul and skipper Shubman Gill then got together to launch Mission Impossible. After five sessions of solid and determined batting, India managed to keep England bowlers at bay to pull off an extremely creditable draw, which tasted like victory for the visiting team.
Rahul (90) and Gill (103) batted through the remainder of Saturday and went on to add 188 for the third wicket. Rahul missed his century, while Gill scored his fourth hundred and crossed 700 runs in the series.
After Gill’s dismissal just before lunch on the final day, England were still in the game with Indian on 222/4.
Then came another superb partnership between allrounders Washington Sundar (100*) and Ravindra Jadeja (107*). Like Rahul and Gill, the two left-handers were unseparated for two full sessions, as they guided India to safety with an unbroken 203-run partnership for the fifth wicket.
Jadeja completed his fifth Test hundred and Sundar earned his maiden century to deny Ben Stokes & Co. a series-clinching 3-1 lead.
In three days’ time, India and England will battle it in the final Test at the Oval in London, with everything to play for.
Having lost the third Test at Lord’s after coming very close to winning it, India will have to win at the Oval to level the series.
BRIEF SCORES
India first innings: 358
England first innings: 669
India second innings: 425/4 (Shubman Gill 103, Ravindra Jadeja 107*, Washington Sundar 100*; Chris Woakes 2/67).
Result: 4th Test drawn.
Man of the Match: Ben Stokes (141; 5/72 & 1/33).
Series position: England lead 2-1.
Final Test: From July 31 at The Oval.