ENG vs IND 1st Test: Pant-Rahul set stage for historic win in Test in Leeds

KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant hit commanding centuries as India set England a mammoth target of 371 runs on Day 4 of the first Test at Headingley

India edged closer to a famous victory at Headingley after a dominant batting display on Day 4 of the first Test against England. With centuries from KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant forming the backbone of their second-innings total, the visitors set England a daunting target of 371 runs. By stumps, England were 18 without loss, needing 353 more on the final day to avoid going 0-1 down in the five-match series. 

 

Session 1: Early Blow, Steady Recovery 

India resumed the day at a comfortable 92/2 but suffered a jolt early on when Brydon Carse removed skipper Shubman Gill (8) in just the second over of the morning. However, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant rebuilt smartly, weathering the early movement and consolidating India's position. The duo added 61 runs for the fourth wicket as India reached 153/3 at lunch, tightening their grip on the match.

 

Session 2: Pant, Rahul Take Charge 

The post-lunch session saw India completely dominate proceedings. Both Pant and Rahul brought up their centuries in commanding fashion, mixing aggression with maturity as the English bowlers toiled. Pant, particularly, was in fluent touch as he brought up his third Test century in England.

 

His fine knock of 118 eventually came to an end, dismissed by Shoaib Bashir, but by then India were firmly in control. Rahul, solid as ever, remained unbeaten on 120, and along with *Karun Nair (4)**, ensured India ended the session at 298/4, leading by 305 runs.

 

Session 3: Tail Wags Briefly After Collapse 

In the final session, Rahul pushed his score to 137 before falling to Carse, ending a superb innings that showcased patience and class. The innings then saw a brief collapse as Karun Nair (20), Shardul Thakur (4), Mohammed Siraj (0), Jasprit Bumrah (0), and Prasidh Krishna (0) all departed in quick succession.

 

Josh Tongue was the wrecker-in-chief, taking three wickets in one over and finishing with a fiery spell. However, Ravindra Jadeja’s unbeaten 25 ensured India posted a final total of 364, setting England a massive 371-run target.

 

England’s Openers Hold Fort 

England’s openers Zak Crawley (12)* and Ben Duckett (9)* negotiated the tricky final overs of the day well, ending on 18/0 at stumps. They will have a mountain to climb on Day 5, with 353 more runs required on what is expected to be a deteriorating pitch offering assistance to India’s spinners and pacers alike. 

England 2nd innings scorecard: 

England 2nd Inning
21-0 (6 ov) CRR:3.50
Batter	Dismissal	R	B	4s	6s	SR
Zak Crawley	Not out	12	25	2	0	48
Ben Duckett	Not out	9	11	0	0	81.82
Extras	0 (b 0, Ib 0, w 0, nb 0, p 0)
Total	21 (0 wkts, 6 Ov)
Bowler	O	M	R	W	NB	ECO
Jasprit Bumrah	3	0	9	0	0	3
Mohammed Siraj	2	1	9	0	0	4.5
Ravindra Jadeja	1	0	3	0	0	3

India 2nd innings scorecard:

 

India 2nd Inning
364-10 (96 ov) CRR:3.79
Batter	Dismissal	R	B	4s	6s	SR
Yashasvi Jaiswal	c JL Smith b B Carse	4	11	1	0	36.36
KL Rahul	b B Carse	137	247	18	0	55.47
Sai Sudharsan	c Z Crawley b B Stokes	30	48	4	0	62.5
Shubman Gill (C)	b B Carse	8	16	1	0	50
Rishabh Pant (WK)	c Z Crawley b S Bashir	118	140	15	3	84.29
Karun Nair	c & b C Woakes	20	54	3	0	37.04
Ravindra Jadeja	Not out	25	40	2	1	62.5
Shardul Thakur	c J Root b JC Tongue	4	12	0	0	33.33
Mohammed Siraj	c JL Smith b JC Tongue	0	1	0	0	0
Jasprit Bumrah	b JC Tongue	0	2	0	0	0
Prasidh Krishna	c JC Tongue b S Bashir	0	11	0	0	0
Extras	18 (b 5, Ib 4, w 3, nb 6, p 0)
Total	364 (10 wkts, 96 Ov)
Bowler	O	M	R	W	NB	ECO
Chris Woakes	19	4	45	1	1	2.37
Brydon Carse	19	2	80	3	2	4.21
Josh Tongue	18	2	72	3	1	4
Shoaib Bashir	22	1	90	2	0	4.09
Ben Stokes	15	2	47	1	2	3.13
Joe Root	3	0	21	0	0	7