Jadeja-Sundar act of defiance in an away performance for the ages

Centurions who saved the day

- Somshuvra Laha [e-mail]

If you think draws are boring, this should change your mind a bit.

That a side battling back from 0/2 in the first over to losing only two wickets in 142 overs and dictating in the end to share the spoils, defying spirited spells, breaking their opponents’ will, with the conditions and time against them, can be momentous. England know they had this game in their pocket. Till Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar put their foot down, played out two nervy sessions on a rock hard Manchester pitch and bullied the hosts into conceding them individual hundreds.

This was unfinished business for Jadeja, who was stranded at the other end of Lord’s when Mohammed Siraj couldn't stop the ball from rolling on to his stumps and dislodging the bail. But more for Sundar who didn't even open his account in that innings. The desperation was real for India with the series on the line, Rishabh Pant doubtful to bat, and just how the first session had left the Test wide open. For Sundar, still considered the nearly man, this was the moment of reckoning.