When India went to lunch on Day 4 at 1/2 after three overs of their second innings, the writing seemed to be on the wall. India had dominated vast stretches of the opening four Tests, but the score was likely to be 3-1 to England by Saturday evening. Instead, Shubman Gill and KL Rahul, initially, and Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, later, batted out of their skins across five sessions to give India a priceless draw that kept them alive in the series heading to The Oval for the final Test.
Even though Gill and Rahul had batted tremendously to take India to stumps at 174/2, England were still prohibitive favourites when play began under fairly grey skies on Sunday. And when both overnight batsmen fell in the opening session, it appeared that England had one hand on the new Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
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But Jadeja and Washington had other ideas, batting the best part of the final two sessions to utterly frustrate Ben Stokes and England. More importantly for India, their defiant hundreds and occupation of the crease throughout the afternoon meant even more miles in the legs of England’s bowlers. Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse have played all four Tests, bowling well over 150 overs each, and both looked shattered by the end.
Stokes, who has bowled 140 overs himself, was constantly feeling his right shoulder while bowling in the morning, and there were a few nervous grabs of the right hamstring as well as he bowled a marathon spell. One that kept fiendishly low accounted for poor Rahul, out for 90 after a 230-ball vigil, and a nasty lifter from a good length took a piece out of Gill’s helmet after smashing his fingers on the bat handle.
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Gill overcame that pain to bring up a record-breaking fourth century of the series – a sedate and watchful 228-ball effort – but his dismissal on the stroke of lunch, fencing at one from Jofra Archer, opened the door. No one knew then that the left-hand batting duo of Jadeja and Washington would slam the door shut with a 203-run partnership that spanned 334 balls.
Washington was more circumspect, though he did summon up the shot of the day, an incredible pick-up shot for six off Stokes. Jadeja was busier from the moment he arrived at the crease, and struck some lovely boundaries down the ground. When the final hour began, with 15 overs remaining and India 75 ahead, Stokes offered to shake hands and call the game off. Much to his and England’s disgust, India refused and batted on.
In protest, Stokes bowled Harry Brook, but India didn’t care, with both batsmen in sight of their hundreds. A straight six off the hapless Brook took Jadeja to a 182-ball century, and Washington brought up his maiden hundred not long after (206 balls).
The drama didn't end there as an annoyed Stokes refused to shake hands with Jadeja and Sundar as the Indian pair engaged in the post-match rituals. What shouldn't have been a storyline, especially after a fine knock by the Indian all-rounders, sadly became one. When the Indian captain was asked about the moment, Gill unapologetically said: “It was up to the boys. I thought they batted brilliantly, both of them were in the 90s, and both deserved their centuries.”
Having done all the hard work to save the game, India seemed to delight in England’s fatigue, discomfort and unhappiness. How the mood had changed compared to Saturday afternoon.
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