Ranchi (Jharkhand): Young Shubman Gill and Dhruv Jurel held their nerves as India scripted a five-wicket win over England in the fourth Test here on Monday and took a 3-1 lead in the five-match series.
Chasing 192, India started from their overnight score of 40/2. But the Rohit Sharma-led side was in a spot of bother at 120/5 and needed another 72 runs for a win. That is when Shubman Gill (52 not out) and Dhruv Jurel (39 not out) joined forces and romped the team home without any further hiccups.
First the duo showed respect to English spinners Shoaib Bashir (3 for 79) and Tom Hartley (1 for 70) and dealt in singles and doubles as they inched closer to the target on a tricky surface at the JSCA International Stadium here.
Jurel, who was the top-scorer in the first innings, also showed his mettle in the second essay. Jurel hit only two two boundaries in his knock but more importantly he shared an unbroken 72-run stand for the sixth wicket.
This was after India suffered a middle-order collapse and England bounced back into the game The opening duo of skipper Rohit Sharma (55 off 81 balls) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (37 off 44 balls) providing the perfect platform for others to build with their 84-run stand on day four of the match.
However, there were some jitters after the two departed in close succession followed by Rajat Patidar (0), Ravindra Jadeja (4) and Sarfaraz Khan's (0) dismissals in quick succession. From 84 for 1, India was reeling at 120 for 5 and England led by Ben Strokes sniffed a chance to level the series.
But Jurel and Gill had other ideas and they ensured that India won the game and took an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series. Jurel, who finished the game with two runs, was named as the player of the match for his stupendous performance.
England posted 353 runs in the first innings and India in reply then scored 307. England, however, was bundled out for 145 in their second essay as ace off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin took a five-for (5 for 51).
Dhruv Jurel at the post-match presentation said that he plays according to the demands of the situation. "The first innings, we needed to get runs as well, we knew we had to bat last and so any runs would be vital. I was involved in some partnerships, so credit does go to all those who stayed and added runs. I just saw the ball and then reacted to it, not thinking too far ahead. The conversation was good (with Shubman Gill), we just broke it into 10-run sets and started developing the partnership," added Jurel, who plays for Uttar Pradesh in the domestic circuit.
