The Lord's Test ended in heartbreak for India as Mohammed Siraj played a backfoot defence that rolled onto the stumps to give England a 21-run victory. It was reminiscent of the way the famous 1999 Chennai Test between India and Pakistan had ended.
Siraj batted for 30 deliveries late on day five, sticking around with Ravindra Jadeja to get close to what would have been a historic victory. However, the last of those deliveries ended up confirming heartbreak for him and India instead.
Shoaib Bashir bowled a slow short ball that Siraj went back and defended with ultra soft hands, keeping the fielders around his bat in mind. Unfortunately for him, the ball dropped under his eyes and rolled back ever so slowly into his stumps, striking it with enough force to dislodge one bail and bring an end to an epic Test match, resulting in a 21-run India defeat.
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Back in 1999, India's Chennai Test against Pakistan had ended in almost exactly the same manner.
Batting first, Pakistan made 238 on the back of half-centuries from Mohammad Yousuf and Moin Khan. India got a slender lead of 16 thanks to half-centuries from Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid. Shahid Afridi then scored a rapid hundred, making 141 off 191 balls opening the batting, to help Pakistan setup a target of 271 for India.
In the run-chase, Sachin Tendulkar made a valiant 136, only supported by Nayan Mongia's 52 at No.7. Every other Indian batter apart from these two made less than 10.
Much like Jadeja found himself running out of partners at Lord's, Tendulkar was waging a lone battle in Chennai. Following Mongia's dismissal at the score of 218, India needed another 53 runs with four wickets in hand. Tendulkar added 36 with No.9 Sunil Joshi (8 off 20), before he fell as the seventh wicket at 254, India needing another 17 for victory.
Also read: ‘Don’t know what Sachin was thinking’ – Waqar Younis on 1999 Chennai Test
However, the Indian tail could only last another 21 balls, scoring just four more runs as they lost the match by 12. Javagal Srinath was the last man dismissed. Like Siraj, he too middled a defensive shot off the backfoot of a spinner - Saqlain Mushtaq - only for the ball to bounce between his legs and smash into his stumps, leading to jubilation for Pakistan and agony for India. Unlike Lord's, both bails had come off in Chennai.
India then won the second Test in Delhi to draw the series 1-1. Bashir, who took the final wicket at Lord's, wasn't even born when the Chennai Test took place.
Watch the ending to the 1999 India-Pakistan Chennai Test
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