India survived a scare and finally managed to draw the first Test against England in Rajkot on Sunday. Set a target of 310 in the post-lunch session on day five, India managed to reach 172/6 at close. In the end, England gained the upper hand psychologically and will go into the second Test in Visakhapatnam on November 17 on a high.
It was once again skipper Virat Kohli who steered India to a draw with an unbeaten knock of 49, along with Ravindra Jadeja (32 not out), after the hosts were struggling at 132/6. Earlier, England skipper Alastair Cook scored his 30th Test century before declaring at 260/3 in the second innings.
Like a pack of wolves that had smelled blood, they stood around each batsman at the crease. They waited in anticipation each time the bowler ran in. But India managed to escape from their trap.
England will take the flight to Visakhapatnam, for the second Test which starts on Thursday. They'll fly with the confidence of having cornered the World's No. 1 Test team in their own backyard, at their own game, against their own strengths.
The first Test in Rajkot that needn't have ended in a draw ended precisely that way after the hosts survived the mandatory overs until stumps at the Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) Stadium in Rajkot on Sunday. In the end, Virat Kohli - with R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja to back him up - made it look easy. But for the better part of India's innings, it wasn't exactly a walk in the park.
Alastair Cook would've loved to have another go, but the umpires had to call time. A Test match that witnessed six centuries and saw 27 wickets fall - 22 of them to spin bowling - in a span of five days, concluded in thrilling fashion.
England resumed Day Five at 114 for no loss and raced beyond 200 by lunch. The visitors then stretched the overall lead from 250 to beyond 300 and the clock started ticking for Cook to declare. He did it just before tea, setting the hosts a target of 310 runs with a minimum of 49 overs to go.
It is possibly here that the visitors could've gone about things differently. Declaring 10 overs early, perhaps, would've given them added space. Murali Vijay and Gautam Gambhir walked out once again and England waited for the two batsmen to set the tone for an innings that would help them figure out what India had in mind - whether to settle for a draw or attempt an impossible chase.
Gambhir never gave them the chance. Without a single run on the board until the second over, he walked back edging Chris Woakes to second slip. England would have to wait for Cheteshwar Pujara to join Vijay to read India's mind. The first innings centurions soon spelt it out - India would go for a draw. A sensible option, given the England spin trio that was threatening with each delivery on a track that had finally started showing signs of wear and tear. It was going to be about the number of deliveries that India had to play to survive, not the number of runs to be scored.
But it was better said than done because Adil Rashid - the bowler who had troubled India the most in the first innings - was once again on the prowl. Pujara misread the line. Vijay misjudged the length. Both fell to Rashid's guile between the 17th and the 20th over to make the home team sweat.
Ajinkya Rahane, who had struggled to find his feet in the first innings, failed to get going either. Bowled by Zafar Ansari earlier in this match, Rahane got bowled in his second stint too. A sharp turning delivery from outside offstump from Moeen Ali went on to hit leg-stump after the ball deflected onto the wickets from his pad as the batsman tried to play against the spin.
India slipped to 71 for 4 in no time and 132 for 6 with seven mandatory overs to go. Cook would've pushed for more if it mattered. Kohli knew he had to hold fort. Here's where Ashwin will deserve a pat on the back. The off-spinner, who scored an excellent 70 in the first innings, stood like a rock yet again for a 56-ball 32. He clearly looked more reliable than most other batsmen in the Indian middle-order when it mattered most.
There were reviews and drops, like there had been throughout this Test. But none mattered. Kohli's partnership with Ashwin, followed by Jadeja's cameo in the end saved India the blushes. Cook finally relented after India had played out 52.3 overs. The moment had passed.
In the first innings, England made a mammoth total of 537 runs with Ben Stokes (128) scoring his fourth test hundred. In reply Cheteshwar Pujara and Murali Vijay scored centuries but India were bowled out for 488 and England took a 49 run lead.
