WICKET! Pant c Cummins b Lyon 97 Aaaaaaahhhh he falls! Short of the ton, and well short of the win, but Rishabh Pant has changed the game. The way he played was always going to bring that risk. He advances at Lyon, looks to drive through cover again, but Lyon gets enough purchase and turn. Takes the thick outside edge to backward point where Cummins dives forward and claims a good low catch. Celebrations for Australia, while Pant walks off trailing his bat on the ground like Paul Bunyan dragging his axes. What an entertainer, what a fight. 79th over: India 250-3 (Pujara 58, Pant 97) Green coming in over the wicket, bowls short and Pujara pulls for four! The first pull shot I can recall him playing in this innings. That was played with authority, middled along the ground through square leg, precise as you like. The set-square and compass man, Pujara. (No, not saying that he’s a Freemason.) 79th over: India 250-3 (Pujara 58, Pant 97) Green coming in over the wicket, bowls short and Pujara pulls for four! The first pull shot I can recall him playing in this innings. That was played with authority, middled along the ground through square leg, precise as you like. The set-square and compass man, Pujara. (No, not saying that he’s a Freemason.) 78th over: India 246-3 (Pujara 54, Pant 97) Pujara still using the dancefloor approach to Lyon, flicking square and taking a single as Cummins dives across from midwicket. Pant drives a run down the ground. Pujara goes to square leg again. They’re milking the spin effectively now. Pant takes on Lyon once more, charging and flogging it flat to long on. Shouts of catch but the man is too square and Hazlewood can’t get there. And when Pant attacks Lyon, he attacks in twos. Down the track, bat-pad flinches, cover sprawls, but Pant has opened the face and slayed it through cover for four more! He’s on 97, and India need 161 to win! “I think Cummins is possibly the only Australian bowler immune to thoughts of Stokes with the lead under 200. 12 overs on the trot from that man, thanks,” writes Eamonn Maloney. I suspect you’ll see that in two overs once the new ball arrives. 77th over: India 235-3 (Pujara 52, Pant 88) Green bowling, and Pant won’t put his shots away as the day goes on. Gets width, throws the full IKEA display kitchen at it, and slices it over the slips for four! There’s a deep backward point almost, for Pant, rather than a traditional third man, but he can’t get around. Next ball? Same again! Width, swing, and this one more outside edge than slice, and it goes a little finer. Next ball? Wide, swings, drives it hard to cover for no run. 55 overs left, 172 to win. Headingley klaxon! “Paine, Labuschagne, Wade, Warner, Lyon, Cummins and Hazlewood must be getting a few harrowing flashbacks to Leeds a year last September...” writes Ian Forth. Fifty! Pujara 52 from 170 balls 76th over: India 227-3 (Pujara 52, Pant 80) The half-century for Pujara with a beauty, dancing down at Lyon, whipping hard with a lot of wrist, on the bounce and nutmegs Wade at short leg before smoothly rolling for a boundary at deep square leg. He’s found a method against Lyon and it’s worked so far. 180 to win. 75th over: India 223-3 (Pujara 48, Pant 80) Green bowling instead of Starc now. I reckon this plays in India’s favour, letting them get their eyes in ahead of facing the second new ball. Pant drives Green out through cover for three, and that gives David Warner’s groin a workout (if you’ll forgive the image) as he chases it to the rope and keeps it in. Pujara just ducks and weaves against the rest, including one bouncer so high and tailing so far that it’s called a wide. When Green pitches up, Pujara on-drives a single. The runs keep coming, 184 to win in 57 overs. 74th over: India 218-3 (Pujara 47, Pant 77) Lyon to Pant, who cuts hard and gets a thick bottom edge into Paine’s shin pad behind the stumps and then to slip. Hope no one tries to claim that one as a drop, that was rocketing. As a contrast, Pant sedately turns away a single to allow Pujara to block out the rest. Pujara has 6000 runs in Test cricket after that last over. He’s faced over 13,000 balls to get them. 73rd over: India 217-3 (Pujara 47, Pant 76) Short from Starc and an uppercut from Pujara for four! Quite the shot. Just instinct I think, Starc angles the ball in at Pujara from around the wicket, and while first thinking of protecting himself Pujara just opens the face of the bat late and deflects it high over the cordon to the boundary. Then shapes to pull but bails out, before nudging away a less short ball for a run. Pant pulls a single to follow. 190 to win. 72nd over: India 211-3 (Pujara 42, Pant 75) Lyon to start proceedings to Rishabh Pant, with that bat-pad in place on the off side. Pant skips immediately and drives a run to long-on. Some ODI batting. Pujara comes down as well and flicks away, and it’s a chance but a near impossible one. Wade at short leg sidesteps with Pujara as he advances, and the shot is middle straight into Wade’s hand and then away to midwicket. He was hit by the ball, there was no chance of seeing it, but it could have looped up somewhere. To follow up, Pujara scores a run to point. The target is under 200 now. 199 to win. 71st over: India 209-3 (Pujara 41, Pant 74) Starc will resume after lunch, this is interesting. Hazlewood and Cummins are the danger pair after a pause, but are they being saved for the new ball? It’s 10 overs away. Starc bumps Pant, and clips him on the side of the helmet. Not a blow that does damage, it’s angled across him and flies away to third man for two leg byes. Another short ball and Pant pulls a run to fine leg. With the right-hander on strike though, Starc is bowling like a busted. Wide or down the leg side, easy to leave. Lunch – India 206 for 3, with 62 overs left and 201 to win What a session of Test cricket: that’s as good as just about anything else I’ve seen. Hazlewood, Cummins, Lyon all bowling really well. The anticipation overnight, the dismissal of India’s captain early. But then the masterstroke of sending the team’s most attacking player out there, something that may not have worked nine times out of ten, but this is the ten. Rishabh Pant took them on like you rarely see in Test cricket, hitting three sixes and eight fours, and severely disrupting Australia’s premier spinner. Australia’s problems have been Starc bowling poorly and Paine’s two dropped catches behind the wicket. He’ll get plenty of scrutiny for those, although I’d class them as the type that a keeper doesn’t have control over: they either hit the gloves or they don’t. The numbers still say it’s Australia’s Test: the likelihood is that the one erratic ball will come along, the partnership will end, and the probable result will arrive. But for now, the chance of something far more remarkable happening survives. Enjoy that feeling while you contemplate your sandwiches. 70th over: India 206-3 (Pujara 41, Pant 73) Last over before lunch, Lyon to Pujara, a slip and twin bat-pads either side of him, but Pujara isn’t shutting up shop when he sees the slightest touch of shortness, stepping back and cracking it through cover point for four! Neil Titterington emails. “I cannot be the only Aussie sat here not-so-secretly willing India on here, can I?! After the troubling events yesterday, I would genuinely love for them to be able to give the ultimate two fingers to those so-called Australian fans.” 69th over: India 202-3 (Pujara 37, Pant 73) Cummins to Pant, around the wicket, but Pant is playing circumspectly for the time being, blocking and leaving. Cummins tries an off-break slower ball but it’s outside the stumps and left alone. Pant ducks a bouncer rather than hooking it. Two minutes until lunch is probably why. Maiden over. 68th over: India 202-3 (Pujara 37, Pant 73) Lyon gets his shot at Pant, has men in the deep, so Pant happily pushes a single through cover point. That makes 100 runs in the session for India. Pujara advances and defends, knocking the ball away with the knee-roll of his pad that raises shouts of “Catch!” No bat there. Plenty on the next ball though, as Pujara skips down and whips through midwicket for four. Lovely shot, up on one foot as he struck it, balletic and elegant. What a player he is. It raises the team 200 and the 100 partnership, batting on day five to stay in a Test match. 67th over: India 197-3 (Pujara 33, Pant 72) Pujara has kept the strike to face Cummins, who bowls over the wicket to the right-hander, back of a length, in at the gloves. One bouncer in the over. Pujara doesn’t mind any of it. He is the headland, bowlers are the sea. 66th over: India 197-3 (Pujara 33, Pant 72) Ha. A cheer of celebration from Paine as he sees Pujara edge the ball, then turns back to see it in Steve Smith’s hands at slip. Only problem was that it bounced first. Lyon bowling around the wicket to Pujara and he still looks dangerous, four balls that have the batsman discomfited, having to defuse them more than play them. Sixth ball Pujara advances and whips a run square. 65th over: India 196-3 (Pujara 32, Pant 72) Back to the big guns. Paine turns to Cummins. Has him come around the wicket at Pant, the same approach that Cummins took when he smashed the batsman on the arm in the first innings. Cummins bluffs though, doesn’t bowl short but bowls a length for the first few balls. Fifth ball is too full, and Pant cover-drives him for four! Tom Bowtell writes in. “I’m getting distinct Pant-focused flashbacks to this final day. Am hereby predicting an identical final result here, with Lyon’s 400th wicket taking the place of Anderson’s 564th as the denouement.” 64th over: India 192-3 (Pujara 32, Pant 68) Lyon to Pujara, who is looking to score once or twice but can’t beat the field with his nudges. Fifth ball there’s a proper appeal, Lyon gives it the genuflecting spirit fingers and all the sauce. Umpire Reiffel says nahhhh. Smashed Pujara on the pad but it was high and spinning down leg side. Massive turn for Lyon though. Maiden over. 63rd over: India 192-3 (Pujara 32, Pant 68) Another boundary for Pant! He loves to start an over this way. Starc makes it easy by bowling very full outside his off stump, allowing Pant to drive hard through it to the cover boundary. It’s a no-ball too! Then he takes a single from the next. You would think the Australians want Pant on strike because he’s the one they’d have more chance to get out, but effectively he’s managed to get off strike first ball of the over and cost them five runs in the process. Pujara though gets moving a little, gliding a couple of runs behind point, then glancing a straight one for a single. Pant back on strike. Smacks a wider ball to point but Pucovski puts in another good diving stop to make it a dot ball. Not the final ball though, too short and Pant pulls it for four! No protection out at midwicket. This is a remarkable innings. The over costs 13 and India need 215. 62nd over: India 179-3 (Pujara 29, Pant 59) Pant pushes an early run to point from Lyon. Australia having to go some Plans B & C now. Two short legs in for Pujara against Lyon, who changes to over the wicket for one ball, then changes back and goes around. Wants to draw that edge into pad. But Pujara does not misread the line of the ball once in this over. What a player Pujara is. He’s faced 117 balls now. They’re down to 70 overs left, and 222 runs behind, the Richie Benaud. 61st over: India 178-3 (Pujara 29, Pant 58) Starc to Pant, short, fended away without alarm for a single to the leg side. Starc comes around the wicket to Pujara, left-hander to right-armer, an approach that Starc enjoys when he gets the ball to reverse. We’ve seen him absolutely demolish a couple of line-ups doing this, in Galle against Sri Lanka and in Durban against South Africa and in Melbourne against Pakistan, most notably. Can reverse it away from the edge to get nicks, or inwards to hit stumps. It’s not really swerving for him today though. Pujara picks up a couple of runs clipped behind square leg, his spot, no matter how well it’s guarded. 60th over: India 175-3 (Pujara 27, Pant 57) Lyon is going to come back and try again. Bowling to Pant. And he’s dropped first ball! For once Pant doesn’t attack, he defends from the crease and Lyon rags it from the rough, takes a fine edge up high on the outside edge, and I think that went low straight into Paine’s leg rather than glove. Lyon has had Pant nicking twice today. After a few balls Pant whacks one through point for a run, then Pujara draws the most unrealistic appeal of the day after a ball comes off the flap of his front pad, outside leg stump, about a foot from his bat, but Lyon and Wade want to ask if there was a catch. 59th over: India 174-3 (Pujara 27, Pant 56) Paine turns for variety to Cameron Green, who bowled a couple of overs last night and now gets his third. Very tall, can be quick, comes around the wicket to Pant and gets a decent line going, in at the batsman from a wide angle. Pant jabs a single eventually to midwicket, Pujara just outlasts the final couple of balls. 58th over: India 173-3 (Pujara 27, Pant 55) Four more! Starc to Pant, who hops and jabs a cross-bat shot on the bounce to backward point, where it eludes gully and rolls to the boundary to start the next over. That had angle across the batsman, and the next bouncer doesn’t, but Pant calmly hooks it away for one run. To the right-handed Pujara, Starc keeps straying down leg side. Fifty! Pant 50 from 64 balls 57th over: India 168-3 (Pujara 27, Pant 50) Lyon to Pant, who comes down the track and drives six over cover! Absolutely nailed that one, right out of the middle after getting right to the pitch, first ball of the over. Goodness me! Second ball? Goes again! Long on this time, closing the face of the bat to loft it leg-side. It soars away! He follows up by cutting a single for his half-century. That’s 45 from his last 30 balls. And 34 from three overs against Lyon, in a concerted attack. Pant does not want to let Lyon dominate the last day, and so far it’s working! Pujara walks down to defend, steps back to defend, drives to defend. India need 239 to win. If Pant lasts another hour like this, maybe the runs required to win won’t be notional after all. Probability says the wicket will come... 56th over: India 155-3 (Pujara 27, Pant 37) Little milestones for India, they’ve batted through an hour and a half this morning and only lost one wicket. Their reward is to face Mitchell Starc. He starts off down the leg side, as is his style to start with, which usually means a perfect yorker isn’t far away. Not this time though: five balls that are all either leg stump or outside, then one that’s too wide outside off. 55th over: India 155-3 (Pujara 27, Pant 37) Ah, now Lyon has been swung around to the Paddington End. So he will perhaps try to bowl in tandem with Labuschagne, and confuse Pant with the differing styles of spin. And they’ve changed tactics too, with the bat-pad catcher on the off side rather than the leg, to get in Pant’s eyeline and interfere with his footwork. Pant battles out the over, hesitant to use the feet in case a ricochet goes to that close fielder, either for a catch or a run out. Survives, but looks edgy. This is tense! 54th over: India 155-3 (Pujara 27, Pant 37) Curious that Lyon hasn’t been swung around to the other end or anything, it’s just a straight swap of him for Labuschagne. Admittedly he turns the ball a long way from around the wicket bowling outside Pant’s off stump, but Pant just helps it around the corner for a single. For Pujara, the right-hander, the bowler is back over the wicket, with a slip and a bat-pad on the off side. Pujara isn’t fussed, he just shuffles away from the line and directs it through cover for one. Pant gets a low full toss but can’t put it away, then drives straight to a deep-set cover and can’t run, but gets the final ball to long-on for a single. 53rd over: India 152-3 (Pujara 26, Pant 35) Hazlewood to Pant now, first ball of the over, and Pant edges for four! Big drive, big edge, and Australia only have one slip in at this point. Smith dives as large as he can, but he can’t be a third slip from first. Hazlewood is the next victim of the third umpire’s no-ball camera from the next delivery, then he bangs one in and Pant takes on the short ball, pulling for three to midwicket as Pucovski runs around in the deep to save with a tumble and a heavy landing. India have got their overs required under 80, their score past 150, and they’re 255 short of a notional win. Colum Fordham emails in. “I think I like the mindset of the Indian batsmen. Calculated aggression on the part of Pujara and outright bravado from Pant. At least, they’re sending out a positive message. Lyon’s bowling beautifully and I’m sure Starc will come into the action soon enough. I’d love to wake up tomorrow morning and find that Pujara had carried his bat and braved out the last overs with Jadeja but suspect that might be wishful thinking. Really appreciated the article by Bharat Sundaresan. Siraj is a brave and gifted young cricketer.” 52nd over: India 144-3 (Pujara 26, Pant 28) This is interesting, Labuschagne is getting a bowl. His part-time leg breaks. Paine perhaps hoping to tempt Pant into even more indiscretions. They’ve got enough in the bank to buy him out. But Pant squeezes out a single first ball and gets off strike, and Pujara takes the rest of the over. The first ball is also retrospectively ruled a no-ball for overstepping, and the seventh of the over costs Labuschagne as he bowls a low full toss. Even Pujara isn’t going to pat that back, he’s been decisive today when he has decided to attack. So he uses his feet and drives it crisply along the ground though long-on for four. Classy. 51st over: India 138-3 (Pujara 22, Pant 27) Hazlewood keeps attacking the stumps and the body, and Pujara does squeeze a ball away not to far from Labuschagne at short leg. Once again that fieldsman is the most excited about everything, appealing in a raucous solo after Pujara presses forward to defend and misses the ball by about six inches. But when the ball is straight Pujara defends immaculately, back foot and then front. He has been so impressive in the last few overs against some top-drawer stuff. He ends another maiden by squeezing a ball off the inside portion behind square, where Warner dives to field. 50th over: India 138-3 (Pujara 22, Pant 27) There are two big footmarks creating rough patches outside Pant’s off stump, and Lyon is trying to land the ball in them. He drops short though, and Pant smacks him through point for four. That’s a decent shot, out of the middle. Unlike the next one, which is sliced down the ground for four more. He charges it and goes for the long-on shot again, but gets a huge leading edge. He has the fortune that it gets some distance rather than going straight up, and that it slices dead straight rather than carrying to long off, who is back with mid on up to tempt those shots. The wicket’s in the mail if he keeps pushing this envelope. He’s taken 21 from Lyon’s last two overs. 49th over: India 130-3 (Pujara 22, Pant 19) Another run to start the next over, Pant dropping one to cover and Pujara calls him through, Pant a second slower to get moving and that nearly costs him as the throw comes in at the non-striker’s end with the batsman at full stretch. It misses. Slip, gully, point, cover, mid on, forward square, short leg, backward square, long leg for Pujara. He goes under a bouncer, then leaves one angling in at off stump but missing, and plays the one angling in that was on line. Great judgement from Che. He’s faced 75 balls thus far. 48th over: India 129-3 (Pujara 22, Pant 18) Lyon to Pant, and Pujara would love to get the left-hander off strike I reckon. Pant plays a bad shot, a forcing off-side drive that he misses as the ball turns past the edge. Didn’t turn as much as others, and thus he nearly nicks it. Pujara has a word, maybe saying play to leg. So Pant does exactly that: rocks back to pull two runs away through midwicket, then advances to chip four runs over mid-on, then advances to clout six more over long on! Pant really going for it – how long is this approach sustainable? Plenty of runs for Australia to play with. Sixth ball of the over, Pant goes back to the off side, driving through cover and a little airily there as well, for another run. 13 off the over. 84 overs left, and 277 runs the deficit. 47th over: India 116-3 (Pujara 22, Pant 5) Hazlewood to Pujara, and El Che does what El Che does best: he exists. Immovable. Has to play every ball of the over bar the bouncer. 46th over: India 116-3 (Pujara 22, Pant 5) Lyon will bowl all day. Pujara backs away and cuts fine of the gully fieldsman, who has to run around to the ball and thus gives them time for a quick single. Pant sees out the next four balls. Meghan Purvis emails in. “Thanks for the link to Bharat Sundaresan’s article; it was an insight into something a lot of us have seen but not experienced directly. I admire Siraj’s courage, but am so disheartened by the need for it. To lean into the stereotype of Americans making everything about themselves – but justified in this instance, I think – we’ve just illustrated for the world what happens when you placate racism; it’s a gallows at the heart of your country.” 45th over: India 115-3 (Pujara 21, Pant 5) Hazlewood on for Cummins, and the Australians are fielding really well today. Hazlewood himself had a great stop at mid-off a few overs ago. This time Green dives at gully to save another steer from Pant, then Wade at cover dives across to grab a ball one-handed on the bounce. Their efforts keep Pant on strike for the entire over, which their bowler would absolutely love. A maiden. 44th over: India 115-3 (Pujara 21, Pant 5) Lyon sends down a maiden to Pujara, lots of loop, lots of turn, spinning it into the pad, and thinks about reviewing a not-out lbw hitting very wide of the stumps when Pujara isn’t playing a shot. No review. The projection says it might have clipped the outside of off stump. It’ll be a brave umpire to put up the finger for one of those. But Lyon is getting serious turn. 43rd over: India 115-3 (Pujara 21, Pant 5) Cummins to Pant, but not for long as the batsman clips a run to square leg. Pujara produces another straight drive and beats mid-off to pick up three. The deficit is 292. 42nd over: India 111-3 (Pujara 18, Pant 4) Lyon to Pant, who forces square on the off side. Wants a run but he’s hit it straight to Cummins and gets sent back. He’s playing on the back foot to Lyon a lot, getting back to defend off the pitch. Playing very straight. Eventually goes for a cut shot from the last ball and gets it just backward of point, making time to get through for a sharp run. 41st over: India 110-3 (Pujara 18, Pant 3) Cummins bowling to Pujara, who gets an edge into his pad that falls down. A few close calls already. Pujara sees out the maiden, getting to leave a few outside the off stump, as is his preference. Another over down, only 91 to go. 40th over: India 110-3 (Pujara 18, Pant 3) Lyon to Pant, the left-hander, and a catch is missed behind the stumps. Pant pushes hard on the front foot, the ball spins away and takes a thick edge. It flies fast at Paine and hits the outside of his left glove before he has time to react, and bounces down rather than up to Smith at slip. Pant very carefully blocks out a maiden over, playing from the crease. 39th over: India 110-3 (Pujara 18, Pant 3) Cummins to Pant, who tries that steer again but this time a diving stop from Green at gully denies him a run. He blocks a couple, ducks a bouncer, then takes on the short ball, badly. Plays a little half-pull shot, just places the bat there, gets the toe end, and it flies like a one-winged bird out to square leg. The man in the deep can’t get far enough in from the boundary in time to catch it. A fortunate run results. India trail by 297. 38th over: India 109-3 (Pujara 18, Pant 2) Pujara using his feet a lot against Lyon. Comes down the track a couple of times to defend, then Lyon starts zinging the ball through faster and Pujara goes back a couple of times, before shuffling forward to kick a couple away well outside the off stump. Lyon looks a real handful already, he was at Pujara every ball of that over with men around the back. 37th over: India 109-3 (Pujara 18, Pant 2) Lovely from Cheteshwar Pujara! Steps forward to Cummins and silkily hits the straight drive down the ground for four. Just past the bowler. Now that’s a shot. Glides a run to backward point, then Pant runs the ball away to third man for his first two runs. India’s deficit comes under 300. 36th over: India 102-3 (Pujara 13, Pant 0) The over started well for India, with Pujara advancing a couple of times to Lyon and driving him through midwicket for three. That raised the team ton. Then Rahane falls. And in an interesting move, Rishabh Pant has been promoted in the order. Perhaps India want to hold back Vihari as a more defensive option. Perhaps they want to give him a better chance to get into the game later given he’s short of runs. Perhaps Pant’s painkillers are going to wear off and it’s better to use him early in the day. Anyway, here he is. An attacking player. Watch this space. WICKET! Rahane c Wade b Lyon 4, India 102-3 The early wicket falls! All of India’s overnight hopes sag along with it, as the stand-in captain goes. Nathan ‘Nathan’ Lyon in his first over the day, always with the idea that the spinner should take wickets on day five, and after a wicketless match so far he gets career victim 395 at last. Pretty straightforward, he bowls an off-break with lots of loop, Rahane doesn’t time his forward defensive press, he’s too early on it and it takes a thick inside edge that goes directly to short leg, travelling fast but Wade holds it. 35th over: India 99-2 (Pujara 10, Rahane 4) Cummins to start the day, with a very leg-side field for Pujara. Midwicket, forward square leg, short leg, leg gully, long leg. Yeesh. Also a slip and a gully looking for catches on the off side. Pujara blocks, blocks, and then one keeps low! Already. He tries to duck a short ball and it doesn’t get up. It hits his forearm guard, and a bit of his arm as well, and skews away. That’s not what a batsman wants to see third ball of the day. Fifth ball he squirts away through square leg, gasps from the fielders at the hope that might go to hand. If you’re in the market for a recap of Day 4 with a bit more detail than the usual, Adam Collins and I have you covered with our Final Word daily dose. Get in touch Correspondence is open. My email and Twitter are in the sidebar as usual, drop me a line if you’d like to share your thoughts through the day, on cricket or otherwise. Please read this The other piece of context around this match, and a most deflating one, is the abuse dished out to some of the Indian players by a few members of the crowd. This was reported on both day two and day three, with the very junior player Mohammed Siraj stopping the match to bring it to the attention of umpires and officials. For a player in his second match it was a remarkable display of fortitude to do that, and it’s desperately sad that he had to do it. Predictably he is already being traduced and undermined by some people in Australia who would prefer to believe that he invented the situation. To anyone who would like to minimise it, or to anyone who would like to understand it better, the best thing I can do is point you to an extraordinary article written overnight by my cricket colleague Bharat Sundaresan, who moved to Australia a couple of years ago to report on the game here. Preamble Hello cricket friends. We’re ready to do it all from Sydney again, and for one final time. After this the roadshow will move to Brisbane. If Australia win today it will mean a 2-1 lead with India still able to retain the trophy by winning the fourth and final match. If India can hang on for a draw today, it will be 1-1 with both a series win and a trophy to play for. It’s going to be tough work. India are 98 for 2, a score that is still 309 runs short of a very theoretical target. More importantly their two opening batsmen are gone and the rest of the team needs to bat three sessions to draw. The rest of the team is short one and a half batsmen, too, because Ravindra Jadeja and Rishabh Pant were both injured while batting in the first innings. Pant will bat but will be hampered by a very sore elbow, Jadeja won’t bat at all with a badly dislocated thumb (unless perhaps there’s a Graeme Smith kind of situation with a few overs left at nine wickets down). So that means that the job lies with Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, the pair that was not out overnight. They are India’s most senior batsmen and the ones with the ability to bat long. If they can do so, they’ll create a chance. If one of them falls early, it’s all but over. The runs are out of the equation because the pitch has had variable bounce and has been hard to score quickly on throughout the match. Suddenly dialling up 100 runs a session on the fifth day isn’t going to happen. Survival will be hard with some deliveries keeping low or bouncing higher than expected. And there’s that knack of Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood to find wickets when they need them, plus the fondness of Mitchell Stac and Nathan Lyon for fifth days. That’s the contest ahead of us.