'If Ben Duckett had been batting on 90 in the same situation and the opposition offered a handshake, would England have accepted it?'
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel believes that India put up a commendable performance in the fourth Test, despite the challenges they faced early in the match. While reflecting on the team's overall showing, Parthiv felt there wasn't much he would look to change, barring a particular phase during England's first innings.
'Looking at the way India played this Test match, there's not much I would change -- but if you ask what could have been done better, I'd say the phase on Day 2 when England batted,' JioHotstar expert Patel said.
'During that period, India's bowling lacked consistency and was a bit wayward on both sides of the wicket. That's where some correction was possible,' he pointed out.
England's first-innings score of 669 left India with a mountain to climb.
'Otherwise, this has been a very good Test match for India, especially considering how things unfolded after the toss,' he noted.
'Almost everything seemed to go against India -- when India went in to bat, the clouds were overhead; when England came out to bat, the sun was shining bright,' he observed.
'Still, the way India fought back, there's a lot of confidence to take into the 5th Test.' he added.
On the final day, Ravindra Jadeja smashed an unbeaten 107, and Washington Sundar calmly brought up his maiden century with 101 not out. The duo's unbroken 203-run stand helped India save the match and keep the series alive going into the final Test.
Speaking on the handshake controversy that erupted during the fourth Test between India and England, he questioned 'If Ben Duckett had been batting on 90 in the same situation and the opposition offered a handshake, would England have accepted it?'
In the final moments of Day 5, drama unfolded after India fought to keep the series alive courtesy of Ravindra Jadeja's (107*) and Washington Sundar's (101*) gritty 203-run unbeaten partnership.
With the draw in sight, England captain Ben Stokes went to the Indian pair to offer his hand to signal the end of the contest. With Jadeja on 89 and Sundar on 80, the southpaws refused to accept it and opted to chase their centuries.
The exchange was shown on live television, with Stokes taunting Jadeja if he will score his century against Harry Brook, not even a part-time bowler for his team.
Even opener Zak Crawley chimed in with some banter, saying that Jadeja should have played faster if he wanted his century.
'England did things their own way. Their effort was clear -- they wanted to bowl India out and win the game. But when they realised that wasn't possible, they put their weapons down and acknowledged that India had played very well,' he added.
'At the same time, India did what they wanted to do in their own way -- two players worked really hard, batted brilliantly, and both deserved to score centuries,' he said.
However, Patel raised a thought-provoking question about how England might have responded in a reversed scenario.
'The only question I have is this: if Ben Duckett had been batting on 90 in the same situation and the opposition offered a handshake, would England have accepted it? I am very curious to know this, especially with so many talking about the 'spirit of the game',' he said.
The former India wicketkeeper believes the game still had some cricket left in it and that India had earned the right to continue batting.
'In my opinion, the game should have continued till the end of the day, even if the Indian batters completed their centuries. If 15 overs were still left, India should have batted because they worked extremely hard. Before lunch on Day 4, when two wickets fell, it looked like India could lose the Test on Day 5. But from that point to batting through 143 overs is an incredible effort,' he pointed out.
'So, I believe what India did was absolutely right -- though personally, I feel they could have batted a bit more,' he said.