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The England had been bundled out for a paltry 183. India, in response, had batted with supreme patience, carrying their innings from Day 1 through to the morning of Day 3.
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "Welcome back to Trent Bridge. It's a chilly morning, typical English conditions. India is in the driver's seat, but with the cloud cover, James Anderson will be licking his lips."
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Absolutely, Harsha. England was poor in the first innings, let's be honest. But 183 is on the board. If they can get a few quick wickets here, this game changes. India is 97 for no loss, but the new ball is due soon."
Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul had built a fortress. They left the ball well, respected the good deliveries, and punished the loose ones. But cricket, cruel and sudden, struck moments before lunch.
Ball 37.3: Sam Curran banged one in short. It wasn't express pace, but it climbed on Rohit. Instinct took over—the pull shot. Crack. It wasn't off the middle. The ball floated dangerously towards backward square leg.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "He's gone for it! Is there a man there? YES! Sam Curran right on the rope! England have a wicket!"
Alastair Cook (Comms): "That is the breakthrough England desperately needed. Rohit was looking so comfortable, but the bouncer trap worked."
Shaun Pollock (Comms): "It's a tactical surprise. He wasn't expecting it at that height. Just a lapse in concentration."
Rohit walked back for a well-made 36. The score read 97/1.
The dressing room door opened, and a hush fell over the stadium. This was the moment the Barmy Army had been waiting for. The wunderkind. The man whose stats looked like a glitch in the matrix.
Aarav Pathak walked out.
As he crossed the boundary rope, the giant screen flashed his statistics, causing a ripple of disbelief even among the seasoned English commentators.
[Aarav Pathak - Test Career]
Matches: 13 (Pls help me confirm it, because I totally forgot)
Innings: 18
Runs: 1510
Wickets: 50
Centuries: 9
Half-Centuries: 7
Average: 151.0
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "Just look at those numbers. An average of 151. But the English media has been buzzing all week about him not facing Jimmy Anderson in England. Even Saying the 'Prince' will struggle against the moving ball."
Aarav took his guard, scratching the crease with his spikes. He could feel the pressure. It wasn't fear he had lived a life before this one, the weight of expectation was heavy. The narrative was set: Can the boy play the swing?
He defended the first few balls solidly. But Anderson was winding up the clock.
Ball 40.2: Anderson ran in, his hair slightly greying, but his action as smooth as ever. The ball started on a line that looked like an inswinger, threatening the pads. Aarav committed forward, his front foot planting down to defend. At the very last millisecond, the ball kissed the seam and jagged away. Not a mile, just half a bat's width.
Snick.
A distinct, horrifying sound.
Aarav spun around. Jos Buttler, keeping wickets, dove forward, his gloves scooping the ball inches from the grass.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "GOT HIM! Anderson wins the battle! Welcome to England, Aarav Pathak! That is absolute perfection. Draws him forward, finds the edge, and the soft signal is OUT!"
Alastair Cook (Comms): "Beauty. Absolute beauty. You cannot play that. It starts on off and leaves you."
The review confirmed it. The ball had carried. Score: 104/2.
Aarav walked back, head bowed, the jeers of the crowd ringing in his ears. He had failed. For the first time in a long time. He had been beaten by pure skill.
But the nightmare wasn't over for India.
Ball 40.3: Virat Kohli, the captain, walked out. The crowd buzzed. Anderson vs. Kohli. The ultimate battle. Anderson steamed in. It was a fuller delivery, in the corridor of uncertainty. Kohli, perhaps unsettled by the previous wicket, stretched out to defend. The ball held its line, just enough to find the edge again.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "AND HE'S GOT KOHLI! FIRST BALL! TWO IN TWO! The King and the Prince, both gone in the blink of an eye! Trent Bridge is rocking!"
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "Oh, dear. That is a disaster for India. Kohli pushing at a ball he could have perhaps left. But credit to Anderson, he is relentless."
Score: 104/3.
The Indian dressing room was shell-shocked. From a position of strength, they were suddenly staring down the barrel.
However, the beauty of this Indian team lay in its resilience.
While the top order had collapsed under the Anderson masterclass, the middle and lower order decided to fight. KL Rahul played a sublime, gritty knock of 84, anchoring the innings while wickets fell around him. Ravindra Jadeja, the warrior, added a crucial 56, his sword-celebration silenced by the situation but his bat speaking volumes.
But the highlight—the moment that changed the mood in the dressing room—came from Jasprit Bumrah.
India was eight wickets down. Bumrah faced Sam Curran.
Shaun Pollock (Comms): "Bumrah usually backs away, but he's standing his ground here. That's a clean strike!"
Thwack! A pull shot for four. Crack! A drive through the covers for four. Boom! A lofted shot over mid-on for a massive six!
In the dressing room balcony, the tension evaporated.
Aarav, who had been brooding over his low score, burst out laughing, covering his mouth. Beside him, Virat Kohli, usually intense after a duck, was giggling, mimicking Bumrah's unorthodox bat swing.
"Look at Jassi!" Aarav shouted over the noise. "He's batting better than us!"
"Technique is overrated!" Kohli laughed, clapping as Bumrah swiped another four.
Bumrah finished with a highly entertaining 28, dragging India to 278 All Out.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Frustrating for England. The tail has wagged. India leads by 95 runs. That is a significant lead in a low-scoring game."
The Second Innings Grind
England came out to bat in the second innings with their backs against the wall. But Joe Root, the English captain, was in sublime touch. He played a masterclass of sweep shots and drives, compiling a magnificent century.
Alastair Cook (Comms): "Rooty has been brilliant. He is carrying this batting lineup."
But Aarav wasn't done with this match. He had failed with the bat; he refused to fail with the ball.
Bowling his sharp medium-pace swing, Aarav found his rhythm in the middle overs. He removed Jos Buttler with a slower ball, trapped Dan Lawrence LBW, and had Jonny Bairstow caught at deep square leg. He finished with 3 crucial wickets.
But the star with the ball was Jasprit Bumrah, who claimed a stunning 5-wicket haul, his Yorkers unplayable.
England was eventually bowled out for 303. Target for India: 208 runs.
It was a tricky chase. 208 in England, on a wearing Day 4/5 pitch, was never easy. India negotiated 2 nervous overs on the evening of Day 4 before stumps were drawn.
Day 5: The Fire and The Rain
The morning of Day 5 dawned grey and miserable, but play started on time. The tension was palpable. 208 to win.
KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma walked out. The ball was moving off the cracks.
In the fourth over of the morning, heartbreak struck. Stuart Broad got one to straighten, and KL Rahul nicked it to second slip.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Gone! Broad strikes early! That is exactly what England needed. Now, can they get the big fish?"
Score: India 12/1.
Aarav Pathak walked out to bat.
The situation was different now. The target was visible. The crowd was hostile. Anderson was waiting at the top of his mark.
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "Here he comes again. Pathak had a nightmare in the first innings. 151 average or not, now dropped to 137.64. he has to prove he can do it here."
Inside, Aarav wasn't nervous. He was angry.
The memory of that first-innings edge burned in his mind. He tapped his bat on the crease hard.
"No more defense," Aarav muttered to Rohit as they crossed for a single.
Anderson ran in.
Ball 6.2: Good length, swinging away. The same ball that got him out. This time, Aarav didn't prod. He stepped out. He met the ball on the rise, negating the swing, and punched it through the covers. The sound was like a gunshot. FOUR.
Shaun Pollock (Comms): "Shot! That is a statement. He stepped out to Jimmy Anderson! He's saying, 'I'm not sitting back today.'"
Ball 6.4: Anderson corrected his length, bowling shorter. Aarav rocked back and pulled it violently in front of square. FOUR.
The English fielders looked at each other. This wasn't the timid boy from the first innings. This was the Prince.
Ball 8.1: Anderson tried to cramp him for room. Aarav shuffled across his stumps, got down on one knee—a position usually reserved for spinners—and swept the fast bowler. The ball flew off the middle of the bat, soaring over square leg into the stands.
Alastair Cook (Comms): "I don't believe it! He has swept James Anderson for six! That is outrageous! That is fast bowling, not spin!"
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): (Laughing) "That is audacious! He is toying with the field now!"
Aarav was in the zone. 44 runs off just 34 balls. He was batting on a different pitch. Rohit Sharma was content to just watch the show from the other end.
Then came the shot that silenced the Barmy Army.
Ball 9.3: Anderson, visibly frustrated, tried a yorker. Aarav saw it early. He didn't block. He flipped his bat in his hands, dipped his body low, and ramped the ball. He scooped it. The ball flew directly over the head of a jumping Jos Buttler and raced to the fine leg boundary.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Oh, stop it! You cannot do that! He has scooped England's greatest bowler over the keeper's head! This is T20 cricket in a Test match! Pathak is absolutely destroying them!"
Aarav stood tall, chewing the chewing gum, spinning his bat. He looked at Anderson, whose face was a mask of red fury. India: 66/1. They were cruising. The target was melting away.
And then, the most English thing possible happened.
A drop of water landed on the camera lens. Then another.
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "Oh no. Look at the background. The umbrellas are going up."
Within seconds, the heavens opened. It wasn't just a shower; it was a deluge. The umpires called for the covers immediately.
"No!" Aarav shouted, looking at the sky. "Not now! We need just 2 sessions! Just 2 sessions!"
He stood on the pitch, rain soaking his jersey, unwilling to leave. He had the game by the throat. He was redeeming his first innings failure in the most spectacular fashion.
Rohit grabbed his shoulder. "Let's go, Aarav. It's pouring. Nothing we can do."
They ran back to the pavilion.
The rain didn't stop. Lunch came and went. Tea came and went. The outfield turned into a lake. The super-soppers tried, but the Nottingham weather was relentless.
At 4:30 PM, the captains shook hands.
Match Drawn.
Aarav sat in the dressing room, staring at the rain-streaked window. He had scored a blitzkrieg 44*, but the victory had been snatched away by nature.
Kohli walked over, patting him on the back. "Frustrating, isn't it?"
"We had them," Aarav gritted out. "I had Anderson."
"You did," Kohli grinned, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "And now he knows it. You scared them today, Aarav. We take this confidence to Lord's."
Aarav looked at the replay on the TV screen—his scoop shot playing on a loop. He clenched his fist.
"Lord's," Aarav whispered. "I'm going to conquer it again."
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The press conference room at Trent Bridge was a stark contrast to the chaotic, rain-soaked atmosphere of the ground. The hum of air conditioning replaced the roar of the crowd, and the white glare of camera flashes bounced off the table where two men sat.
Ravi Shastri, the Head Coach, sat with his arms crossed, looking relaxed but possessing a gaze that dared anyone to ask a stupid question. Next to him, Virat Kohli leaned into the microphone, his face set in a mask of simmering intensity. The draw had not cooled his fire; if anything, it had stoked it.
A hush fell over the room as the media manager pointed to a journalist from The Guardian.
Reporter (English Media): "Virat, Ravi... obviously a frustrating end with the rain washing out the final day. But given how the first innings went, with the collapse, do you think the rain saved India today? Or do you genuinely believe you could have chased down that 208?"
Shastri leaned back, a wry smile touching his lips. "Saved us? Did you see the scorecard, mate?"
Virat leaned forward, cutting in before the reporter could respond. His tone was sharp, the quintessential captain's voice.
"Look, to be honest, I don't think you were watching the same game we were," Virat said, his eyes narrowing. "We were 66 for 1. We needed 140-odd runs. The way Aarav and Rohit were batting, we would have finished the game in the post-lunch session itself. There was no 'saving.' The only thing the rain saved was England from a comprehensive defeat."
Reporter (Indian Media): "Virat, a question on the team combination. You played Aarav Pathak again at No. 3, pushing Cheteshwar Pujara down or effectively sidelining him for this match. Is this the end of the road for Pujara, or is this a tactical shift to accommodate Aarav?"
Virat adjusted the microphone, his expression hardening. "No one is being sidelined. Let's be very clear about that. Pujara is an integral part of this Test team. His value is known to everyone. But you have to look at the balance. We have a player in Aarav who is averaging 150 in Test cricket. You cannot keep a talent like that on the bench. It's about the best XI for the conditions. Aarav gives us that aggressive option at number three that puts the bowler on the back foot immediately and give us one more proper fast bowler who could bowl 145+."
Reporter (Sky Sports): "Speaking of Aarav, Virat... he had a bit of a reality check on Day 1, didn't he? Jimmy Anderson worked him over beautifully. Do you think that was a case of overconfidence from the youngster? Did Anderson bring him back down to earth?"
The temperature in the room seemed to drop. Shastri uncrossed his arms, ready to interject, but Virat held up a hand. He stared directly at the reporter, a flicker of anger in his eyes.
"Overconfidence?" Virat repeated, the word dripping with disdain. "You guys love these narratives, don't you? 'Brought down to earth.' 'Reality check.'"
He leaned closer to the mic.
"Did you see the last day? Did you see the last hour before the rain came?" Virat asked, his voice rising slightly. "He smashed Anderson like... I don't even know how to put it. He made a bowler with 600 wickets look like a debutant with 15 games of experience. He scooped him over the keeper. He swept him for six. If Day 1 was a reality check, then Day 5 was a statement. Aarav has played 13 matches, yes, but he has the maturity of a veteran. One bad ball doesn't define a player. But the way he bounced back? That tells you everything you need to know about his character."
Shastri chimed in, his voice booming. "Let me tell you something. To come out after getting a low score in the first innings, and then to walk down the track to Anderson in overcast conditions? That takes guts. That takes steel. The boy is special."
Reporter (BBC): "Joe Root scored a magnificent hundred in the second innings, really keeping England in the game. How do you plan to stop him going forward? It seems he's the only one standing between India and the series."
"Joe is a fantastic player, world-class," Virat acknowledged, his tone respectful but firm. "We know his quality. But if you look at the match, we got 20 wickets. Bumrah was outstanding, five wickets for him. Siraj, Shami, and Aarav chipped in with three crucial wickets. One individual brilliance from their side doesn't change the fact that as a bowling unit, we were superior. We have plans for Joe, and we eben executed it in the first innings, you could see it for yourself."
Reporter (Daily Mail): "Moving on to Lord's... it's the Home of Cricket. England has a formidable record there. It's often called a fortress for the English team. India has only won there twice in history. How do you approach a ground that is historically so difficult for visiting teams to breach?"
A smirk appeared on Virat's face. He looked at Shastri, and they shared a knowing glance.
"A fortress?" Virat scoffed lightly. "Look, history is for the books. It doesn't matter what happened in 1980 or 2014. What matters is the next ball."
He paused, letting the silence hang for a moment before delivering the knockout blow.
"A fortress is only a fortress until it is breached. And we have a habit of doing that. The last time someone told us a ground was a fortress, it was the Gabba in Australia. They hadn't lost there in 32 years. We went there with a broken team and we won. And if I remember correctly, Aarav scored a hundred in that match too."
Virat stood up, signaling the end of the conference.
"We don't look at grounds as fortresses. We look at them as 22 yards of pitch and a boundary rope. We are coming to Lord's to win. Not to compete, but to win."
Ravi Shastri stood up beside him, clapping a hand on Virat's shoulder. He muttered to the press with a grin. "See you in London."
As they walked out, the flashing lights captured the defiance on their faces. The war of words had begun, and Team India was ready for the battle at the Home of Cricket.
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200 Done 🥳🥳
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