India vs England
As day 4 ended, it was another day dominated by the English. The Indians were left to chase 381 runs in 90 overs of the final day with 9 wickets in hand. Earlier in the day, England wrapped up India’s innings, as Jack Leach and James Anderson took 2 wickets apiece to close out the Indian innings with Washington Sundar remaining unbeaten at 85.
Surprisingly, Joe Root did not enforce the follow-on and hit a brisk 40 as the English finished their innings 178 all out. Opener Rohit Sharma fell in the final session of the day, as Shubman Gill and Pujara remained not out for the day.
Day 4
300
Ishant Sharma became the 6th Indian bowler to claim 300 wickets in Tests and only the third Indian pacer to do so. He is only 11 wickets behind the Indian pacer Zaheer Khan (311 wickets). Yes, most of you would have guessed it right on the highest wicket-taker among the pacers- It is none other than the Indian legend Kapil Dev, who has claimed 434 wickets in his distinguished career.
He is also currently ranked 36th in the list of highest wicket-takers in Tests. With the pitch breaking up and offering assistance to both seamers and spinners, It was a length ball that trapped Lawrence lbw for Ishant’s 300th wicket.
114
Ravichandran Ashwin became only the third spinner in the history of test cricket to claim a wicket in the very first ball of the second innings. He is also the first bowler to do so in the last 114 years. He achieved this feat by dismissing the English opener Rory Burns, caught by Rahane at the slips.
The last time it happened was when South African leg spinner Bert Vogler dismissed England's Tom Hayward in a Test match at the Oval in 1907.
The first spinner to achieve the feat was Yorkshire left-arm spinner Bobby Peel during an Ashes Test match in 1888.
28
Ravichandran Ashwin claimed his 28th 5-wicket haul in Test cricket, ended up with figures of 6-61, and in doing so he is now ranked 8th in the list of most 5-wicket hauls in test cricket.
8507
Joe Root has been the pillar of the English test team and the skipper has been in splendid form this year. He managed to dominate the Indian bowlers in the first innings and amassed 218 runs. He came out with an intent in the second innings to score some quick runs and did put on 40 runs which now makes him the 6th highest run-getter after 100 tests, just 1 run behind the Indian legend Rahul Dravid.
50+
Washington Sundar showed once again how valuable he is with the bat. The youngster now averages close to 85 in tests and his second half-century in the first innings meant that he became only the 8th Indian player to score 50+ in debut innings both away and home.
The latest player to achieve the feat before Sundar was the Indian opener- Mayank Agarwal and the first-ever Indian to achieve the milestone was Rusi Modi.
Pakistan vs South Africa
Hasan Ali’s five-wicket haul helped Pakistan get the first series win over South Africa since 2003. Aiden Markam and Rassie Van der Dussen resumed the day on the crease, and it was the latter who fell victim first to Hasan Ali.
The partnership of Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram showed resistance and offered hope to the South Africans. But with the new ball taken, Hasan Ali removed centurion Aiden Markram and Quinton De Kock to trigger a batting collapse which led to a Pakistan Victory.
5
Babar Azam became only the 5th Pakistan captain to win their debut test series. Seen as the next big thing in Pakistan cricket and often compared to Indian skipper and batting maestro Virat Kohli in terms of talent.
This will be seen as a step forward in the right direction of success that has often alluded to the Pakistan Cricket Team.
7
Pakistan wicket-keeper Mohammad Rizwan became the 7th wicket-keeper batsman to score a century in Test cricket. It was Mohammad Rizwan who led the lower order fightback as he scored his maiden century, forging partnerships last 5 pairs scored 222 runs including 53 between Rizwan and Yasir, 97 between Rizwan and Nauman, and so on.
2003
The 2-0 series win by Pakistan against South Africa marked their first test series over the proteas since the year 2003.
Bangladesh vs West Indies
Magnificent Mayers hit an unbeaten 210 of 310 balls on debut as he created history leading to West Indies series win against Bangladesh against the run of play recording one of the highest successful run chase ever. West Indies resumed the day on 110 for the loss of 3 wickets, with another 285 runs left to achieve the win. Bangladesh was confident in the target set as they declared their innings. But the debutant Mayers thwarted all their plans.
210
Kyle Mayers played an innings of absolute grit and got the second string Windies team to one of the historic wins in Tests ever. The 28-year old managed to score 210 runs of 310 balls and ensured his presence till the very last ball of the innings.
His score of 210 is now the 5th highest individual score on debut in a test match. The highest score on debut stands to be 287 scored by English batsman R.E. Foster against Australia back in 1903/1904.
6
Kyle Mayers became only the 6th batsmen in the history of test cricket to score a double-century in the fourth-innings of a test match. The Left-handed sensation finished just 13 runs short of the highest score of 223 in the fourth innings, scored by George Headley of West Indies back in 1929/1930.
395
The target of 395 is often considered close to impractical to be chased down in the fourth innings of a test match. But there have been few instances when the absolute gem of chases have taken place. This chase of 395 by the spirited Windies stands to be the 5th highest target ever to be chased down by a team in the fourth innings.
The highest ever total to be chased down in the last innings of the test match stands to be 418, by the West Indies against the mighty Australians back in 2003.
The inconceivable accomplishment also broke the record for the highest run-chase ever in the Asian continent. The sub-continent conditions are considered to be the toughest to bat on in the last days of a test match and chasing such a humongous total is way beyond vivid.
10
Mominul Haque scored a clinical century in the second innings against the Windies and was dismissed on 115 by Shannon Gabriel. The 10th century of the Bangladesh skipper now ranks him first in the list of most centuries by a Bangladesh player in Tests, beating his fellow team-mate Tamim Iqbal’s record of 9 centuries.
216
The debutants Kyle Myers and Nkrumah Bonner put together a partnership of 216 runs for the fourth wicket. Their partnership is now the highest between two debutants in the fourth innings of a test match. The previous best being 134 by Mohammed Hafeez and Yasir Hameed vs Bangladesh back in 2003.
This concluded our take on all the special numbers involved in this beautiful game. There were some spectacular innings, some eye-catching moments and breathtaking cricket played. Let us know which stats stand out for you the most.
