4th Test: Jadeja, Sundar Smash Tons as Resilient India Clinch Thrilling Draw Against England

England captain Ben Stokes was obviously upset after India declined to settle for a draw late on the last day of the fourth Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy Test.

With the match result practically clinched in the dying hour, Stokes refused to risk his leading bowlers and instead left the ball in the hands of part-timers Harry Brook and Joe Root.

In the last drinks interval, Stokes proposed abandoning the match, but India, with Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar nearing their centuries, decided to continue batting.

The visitors hung on until both batsmen had made their respective hundreds, compelling England to continue bowling—albeit with Stokes not overloading his key seamers and giving a tired Liam Dawson a break, who had bowled heavily throughout the game.

"Everything was done by India and there was just one outcome. I wasn't going to take any risk with my bowlers, (Liam) Dawsey had bowled a lot of overs and his body was getting exhausted. I wasn't going to take any of my front line bowlers at risk," Stokes explained while attending the post-match presentation.

Stokes contributed well personally to the game, notching a century and grabbing five wickets. Still, he acknowledged that personal awards did not count for much if the desired team outcome was not achieved: "I'd give this all back to get the result that we wanted."

India had a terrible beginning to their second innings, losing Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan in the first over. The defeat of the series seemed imminent at that point. But KL Rahul and Shubman Gill steadied the ship during Day 4, setting the tone for a gargantuan display. Jadeja and Sundar then added a superb 223-run stand that helped India escape defeat.

In spite of the dramatic conclusion to the game, Stokes was lavish in his admiration of India's lower middle-order fortitude. He recognized the grit exhibited by Jadeja and Sundar, who rode out England's onslaught with equanimity.

Big pile of credit for how Washington and Jadeja played, have to give them a lot of credit for what they've done from that situation. It's been a back-and-forth series until now, punches kept thrown at each other, tremendous credit to the way India have just continued to fight. We batted absolutely everything at them but they managed to take the pressure," Stokes added.