Lost in fragments: How India keep slipping in a series they should be leading

The sight of Ben Stokes and Ravindra Jadeja in a quiet embrace at the end was poignant.

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Two great all-rounders from either side of the contest, each singularly trying to will his team towards a win on the final day. Between them: bruises, blunted blades, drained expressions.

It wasn't just a hug between rivals. It was an acknowledgement of how much had gone into these five days, and how fine the margins had been.

India lost the Lord's Test by 22 runs. Not quite the 'barest of margins' from that other blockbuster six years ago to the day, but it belonged in the same slow-burn breath. England now lead the five-match series 2-1, each Test dragging into the final session on the fifth day. That's how close it has been. But it's the scoreline that will rankle India. Because in another version of this series, they could have been 2-1, or even 3-0 up.

By the numbers, it makes even less sense. India have scored more runs: 2295 to England's 1945. At a higher average per wicket: 40.98 against 35.36. Hit more hundreds: 8 to 5. Taken the same number of wickets: 55. At a lower average: 36.05 versus 42.60. And claimed more five-wicket hauls: 4 to England's 0.

Even with the unusually big margin of their win in Birmingham, you'd think they should be up on the scorecard. But this isn't a series measured by just maths. It's one that begins to make sense when you connect the dots looking backwards.

As much as this Lord's Test was about the final moments, about weary bodies being urged to make one last play, it wasn't the kind of game India lost through a single plot twist. They began the final day needing 135 runs with six wickets in hand on a wearing, up-and-down pitch. By the end of the hour, they were down to 82 for 7 and Marcus Trescothick's lighthearted line about wrapping it up by Lunch suddenly wasn't far off.