Indian High Commissioner to UK Doraiswami lauds Team India "remarkable fightback" during Manchester Test

London [UK], July 29 (ANI): Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Vikram Doraiswami, lauded the Indian Men's Cricket Team for their "remarkable fightback" during the recently concluded fourth Test against England at Manchester, which ended in a draw on Sunday.
Speaking during an event on the occasion of the team's visit to the Indian High Commission in London on Monday, Doraiswami hailed the player's resilience and fighting spirit, reflecting the ethos of a "new India."
"The Manchester Test was a remarkable fightback by the Indian team... In the spirit of good friendship, from now on, we can always refer to batsmen's pitches as English pitches, rather than sub-continental ones... We got a chance to see Test cricket played the way it is intended to be... People from America will never understand how you play a game for five days and think that a draw is a great outcome. That is because they don't play cricket... The fighting spirit now associated with Team India is a great reflection of the fighting spirit that embodies the new India we are all privileged to represent here," Doraiswami said.
The High Commissioner singled out key performers, providing "special props" to Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar for their performance in the test match, while underscoring the team's inspirational role for the Indian diaspora and cricket fans worldwide.
"Special props to the always reliable Ravindra Jadeja, and also to Washington Sundar for scoring his debut ton... No matter what happens in the next match, we couldn't be more proud of who you are, what you represent, and what you mean to all of us," the Indian High Commissioner to the UK said.
Stellar centuries from Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar in the second innings guided India to secure a draw in the fourth test match of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against England at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Sunday.
India batted for more than five sessions to save the Manchester Test with 425/4 on the board at the end of the final session on Day 5, with Jadeja 107 and Sundar 101, both unbeaten. at the crease. The duo added 203 runs for the fifth wicket.
England went wicketless in the final two sessions after taking important wickets of Indian skipper Shubman Gill and KL Rahul in the first session.
India started the third session on 322/4, taking a slender lead of 11 runs, thanks to an unbeaten 100-run partnership between the two all-rounders, Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja, who stepped up just when the team needed them the most, shutting the doors on England's hopes of a late comeback.
The Shubman Gill-led side still trails the Three Lions' total of 669 by 88 runs.
Team India started the first session of the fifth and final day of the fourth Test from 174/2 with Gill (78*) and opener KL Rahul (87*) unbeaten at the crease.
Earlier in the match, England won the toss and opted to bowl, asking India to bat first. India made 358 in the first innings, with Sai Sudharsan being the top scorer for the visitors.
England posted a huge total of 669, taking a lead of 311 in the first innings with two centuries each from Joe Root and England skipper Ben Stokes.
India suffered an early blow in the second innings, losing two wickets in the first over. From their side, KL Rahul and Shubman Gill played throughout day 4 to put India into a fighting position.
With India having levelled the series back at Edgbaston after a loss in the opener at Trent Bridge, England notched a close win at Lord's before a well-fought draw at Old Trafford. This means that the Asian side can still tie the series going into the final Test at The Oval. Brief score: India 358 & 425/4 (Ravindra Jadeja 107*, Shubman Gill 103, Chris Woakes 2/67) vs England 669 (Joe Root 150, Ben Stokes 141, Ravindra Jadeja 4/143). (ANI)