Stage set for a thrilling final day
ENGLAND GET PERFECT START TO RECORD CHASE
Rory Burns and Haseeb Hameed held firm yesterday to give England hope of a record-breaking win in the fourth Test against India at the Oval.
England were 77-0 at the close of the fourth day, needing a further 291 runs to reach a daunting target of 368 after India had piled up 466 in their second innings, with Rishabh Pant and Shardul Thakur sharing a stand of exactly 100.
But England left-hander Rory Burns was 31 not out on his Surrey home ground and fellow opener Hameed unbeaten on 43 to set up a tantalising finish with this five-match series already intriguingly poised at 1-1.
India were unable to breakthrough after they had again left out star off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, a bowler with 413 Test wickets to his credit but yet to feature this series, on an Oval pitch renowned for taking turn late in the game.
Even so, the odds were still in India’s favour.
The most England have made more to win in the fourth innings of a Test is 3629, requiring 359, against Australia at Headingley in 2019.
But Ben Stokes, whose unbeaten century saw England to that thrilling one-wicket win two years ago, is not playing in this series while the allrounder takes a mental health break from all cricket.
No team have made more to win in the fourth innings of a Test at the Oval than England’s 263-9 against Australia back in 1902. When India captain Virat Kohli was out for 44 before lunch his side were 312-6, a healthy but not unassailable lead of 213 runs.
Pant (50) and Thakur (60), however, shared a partnership of 100 in just 155 balls.
For Thakur it was his second fifty of the match following his 57 in India’s first-innings 191.