As Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli crafted a resistance against hosts England on Friday at Headingley, Leeds, memories of all the fightbacks of the past must have teased all Team India fans. Eden Gardens, Kolkata 2001 versus Australia; or the third Test in Sydney in January this year also against Australia. India's comeback into the game to win or draw a match when very few gave it a chance is the stuff that dreams are made of. Only, if you are an Indian cricket fan, sometimes you do get to see dreams turn into reality. On Friday when bad light ended play and Pujara and Kohli walked back to the pavilion as the umpires called it stumps, India had narrowed their second innings deficit down from a daunting 354 to 139, losing only 2 wickets.
Former India cricketer and now a commentator, left-arm spinner Murali Karthik tweeted: "Great fightback yet again from the Indian team. when ur 354 runs behind, expectations are limited as one feels it's a lost cause even if ur team's a Gun a)from urselves & from others,but yesterday has given hope once more&the more u inch closer,the anticipation& nervousness goes up (sic)."
Indeed, it makes for a hopeful and equally nervous start to day 4 of the Leeds Test. The duo will take guard again with Cheteshwar at 91* having batted away questions on his utility, form and strike rate et all. Captain Virat Kohli (45*) too had an unprecedented lean patch to overcome. Add to that Team India’s poor show in the first innings having been bowled out for 78.
And so, you never know in cricket. And that’s why uncertainty forms more than just a strand of fabric in the sport. Not many sides recover from being bowled out for 78 on Day One of a Test match followed by a massive batting performance by the opponents. But Kohli & Co’s recovery through their second innings puts them in a position to court the impossible even as the situation will play hard to get.
On Saturday, when fourth day's play begins, much will depend on how Kohli and Pujara deal with the challenges of the first session. They’ll be hoping for some loose stuff as much as they expect the cloud cover to stay away because that’s when the ball swings around. How long the duo can bat will define in what shape and manner this Team India's challenge to Joe Root's England will be thrown.
Pujara's intent was there for all to see yesterday; that combined with skipper Kohli's determined vigil frustrated English bowlers no end. How the duo approaches the innings today would be key.
And then there is also a certain Rishabh Pant to follow. With due respect to the abilities of Kohli and Pujara, the role of Pant will be crucial. He can dismantle an attack to an extent that a good position can become a great position to press for an unlikely victory. Having said that in what situation he makes his entry into the middle will be the key. Also crucial will be all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja's contribution with the bat and how long and how much the duo can score. Any talk of overhauling the deficit and setting a target for England if at all will be decided depending on how Pant takes on the host bowlers.
All in all, the day is full of enticing possibilities. As Rohit Sharma said in his press conference at the end of day's play on Friday - 78 all out was sheer poor batting by team India; the players have rectified the mistakes they made in the first innings.
Also crucial will be the weather—with Root all set to take the new ball and unleash James Anderson and company on the Indian duo, the weather forecast is predicted to be generally cloudy with sunny intervals and light winds. How the Indian batsmen cope with the moving ball will be crucial to this match's outcome. All in all, an enticing day's cricket lies ahead not just for India but also host England.
