TimesofIndia.com in Manchester: Nearly two days of insipid bowling, another frantic period before the Lunch break and India’s Test, and series, seemed as good as over early on Day 4 at Old Trafford. The visitors faced just three overs before the umpires flipped the bails to mark the Lunch break but those few minutes were enough for Chris Woakes to send Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan back. Off consecutive deliveries!0/2, trailing by 311 runs, almost a batter short due to Rishabh Pant’s fractured toe and five sessions to survive. It was a terrible position to be in. The overhead conditions and the variable bounce further complicated matters. By no means were the conditions and pitch unplayable but the mental and physical fatigue of chasing leather for 157.1 overs was going to make survival an enduring task.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The equation wasn’t about runs, follow-on and lead but seeing off the period. Yeah, that’s the basics and that’s what Test cricket is all about but the stakes made it a very delicate passage in play. For a side which fancies winning from any position, England would have been licking their lips after seeing the back of the two Indian left-handers who got solid starts in the first innings.In came Shubman Gill to join KL Rahul minutes before Lunch and the immediate task was to see off the hat-trick ball, which he did, and then to ensure there were no more casualties. Both boxes ticked but it would have been a nervy walk back to the change room for both right-handers as the onus was now on them to delay what looked like an inevitable England win at that point.
Shubman Gill remained unbeaten on 78 runs at close of play on Day 4 of the fourth Test between India and England at Old Trafford. (AP)
They, however, were ready with the response as fluency and urgency took over from the pre-Lunch frenzy. Gill dealt in boundaries and had a very Leeds-like start to his innings while Rahul continued to be solid from the other end. The Indian skipper was tested with full and swinging deliveries on to the stumps but he was ready with the response and hit some gorgeous boundaries down the ground – on either side of the wicket.86/2 at Tea, Gill scoring his fifty and Rahul growing in confidence injected much needed stability into the proceedings for India as they didn’t lose a wicket and frustrated the hosts during the second session. ‘Fluency’ was the key word as Gill scored runs for fun when he raced to 45 off just 52 deliveries. Deep into the second session, precisely after being dropped by Liam Dawson, he decided to drop anchor. Nothing flashy and everything solid!
KL Rahul remained unbeaten on 87 runs after Day 4 of the fourth Test between India and England at Old Trafford. (AP)
His partner at the other end continued to be the cotton wool soaking in all the pressure and not giving the opposition an inch. The individual fifties were hit, many milestones – Gill becoming first Asian batter to score 650+ in a Test series in England and India’s second 100+ stand after going 0/2 – reached and frustration began to creep in for the hosts.The bowlers were swapped, a short-ball trap was laid out with fielders placed for hooks, pulls, upper cut and ramp but Rahul and Gill were far too settled to fall into any temptation. With Ben Stokes deciding against bowling, possibly due to the niggle on Day 3, England clearly missed the magical touch after Woakes’ double-wicket over and the pitch not playing any tricks, except the odd one keeping low, didn’t pose any real challenge for the duo who had their eyes well in.The little over three days of the fourth Test weren’t a reflection of how India have fared in the series so far but as Gill has maintained, the bad moments – Day 3 in particular – have been so bad that it has had a big impact on the scoreline.The same could be said about the third day and morning of the fourth but the rear guard act led by the captain and senior batter Rahul has ensured even the fourth Test, like the previous three, is set up for a delicious Day 5 finish.Brief scores: India 1st innings: 358 all out & 174/2 in 63 overs (Gill batting 78, KL Rahul batting 87; Woakes 2/48) vs England: 669 all out in 157.1 overs (Joe Root 150, Ben Stokes 141, Ben Duckett 94, Zak Crawley 84; Ravindra Jadeja 4/143).
