JAS-HWIN

WHEN the early Monday morning Sun glistened off the Bay of Bengal in this City of Destiny, it was pregnant with possibilities. For England, who have already dined with immortality a few times under the Ben StokesBrendon McCullum regime, the history books beckoned.

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN

For India also, it was about history. Of continuing to maintain a positive ledger at home. No visiting team had ever made 300 forget successfully chasing something as ludicrous as 399 in the fourth innings of a Test in India.

In the end, the hosts ticked a couple of big boxes to level the five-match series with three games to go the next one is at Rajkot from February 15). The end Tom Hartley losing his off-stump to Jasprit Bumrah with 107 runs more to achieve the improbable was apt. It was Bumrah, who changed the whole feel of the game when he channelled the bowling Gods in the first innings. If his 6/45 had given Rohit Sharma Co. a 148run lead, his 3/46 on day four had given them big breakthroughs, including the one of Jonny Bairstow, adjudged legbefore for 26. With Ben Stokes at the other end, the pair could have done serious damage in pursuit of 399.

If England had failed in their own pursuit of history, another man, R Ashwin, thought he had his own moment. On 499 wickets, he thought he had Hartley caught behind but DRS reversed the decision. Nevertheless, the three in the wickets’ column was a welcome return after he had gone wicketless in the first innings.