A game where England thought they had an upper hand, India pulled off a stunning draw and stole the match win from England. Gill and his team have made a statement by drawing this game on how they are going to fight against every tough situation in the upcoming times. A match that could’ve made the series 3-1 now stands at 2-1 after this resilient draw from team India.
Leadership under pressure, Performance Over the Top
Shubman Gill has again displayed a batting masterclass, and the inning of 103 (238) in this match stands out more significantly considering the magnitude and the context of the game. Gill scored a 4th century in this series, and now he is behind the records of some greats who played this game.
Gill has scored 722 runs so far in this series, just behind Sunil Gavaskar’s 774 runs for India. Gill is also behind the great Don Bradman’s 822 runs record as the most runs scored by a captain in a series. Shubman is only the 3rd captain, alongside Sunil Gavaskar and Don Bradman, to score 4 hundreds in a series as a captain.
A Batting Performance of India Full of Perseverance
With Gill making a hundred, 3 other batters fought tough against the English bowling attack. KL Rahul, a batter full of class and elegance, took his time on the crease alongside Gill to drain down the England bowlers, making 90 (230). After the wicket of these two, the match demanded two more heroes who could put up a fight; Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja came under the spotlight of the demanded heroes.
Sundar and Jadeja had a partnership of 203 (334). A partnership that brought this game to a draw and frustrated Ben Stokes and his teammates. Jadeja and Sundar played with tremendous focus and resistance and created a partnership that became a tough nut to crack for England. Ravindra Jadeja scored 107 (185) and Washington Sundar scored his maiden test hundred with the score of 101 (206). A Special mention to Rishabh Pant’s 54 (75) in the first innings when he walked out to bat with a fracture in his right leg.
England Created the Everest of Runs in Their First Innings
England’s batting was no less of a headache to the Indian team and the fans. They scored a huge 669 in the first innings, including Zak Crawley’s 84 (113), Ben Duckett’s 94 (100), Joe Root’s record-breaking 150 (248), and Ben Stokes found his rhythm at the perfect time and scored 141 (198). This performance of England with the bat raised concerns about India's bowling attack, including debutant Anshul Kamboj and Shardul Thakur’s speed, as well as Jasprit Bumrah’s decline in speed.
Joe Root has been in the form of his life for a long time now and has been scoring runs all around the world, which led him to a historic record in this test match. Root has now scored a total of 13,409 runs in test matches, surpassing Ricky Ponting (13,378) and Rahul Dravid (13,288). The 2nd highest test run scorer behind The Great Sachin Tendulkar (15,921). Root also became the only player to score 1000+ runs at Old Trafford.
A Match Full of Drama, Tension, Joy, and Frustration
4th test match that went to the last session of the last day, this series has been a proper package of peak test match cricket. This game also had its highlight moments with Stokes being disappointed by Jadeja for not shaking hands on a draw, Rishabh Pant walking out to bat with a fractured leg, Jadeja and Sundar’s partnership frustrating English bowlers, and so on.
The series now goes to the Oval with 2-1, chances for India to draw the series by 2-2, and for England to win the series by 3-1. India might see some changes as Rishabh Pant will be replaced, a question on Anshul Kamboj’s inclusion after a below-par performance, and a big question of Jasprit Bumrah’s availability. One thing is certain, that the 5th Test will also provide another 5 days filled the thrill and entertainment for the fans.
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