India attempt to make a match out of Kanpur damp squib

India's sheer intent and aggressive execution helped them stay on top through an action-packed fourth day of the second Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur. Having lost 55 overs on the opening day and then two full days, all to the weather, the Test match seemed to be heading towards a drab draw. It could still end in a stalemate, but India came out all guns blazing on the penultimate day to change the narrative. KL Rahul (68 off 43 balls) led the fireworks towards the end for the hosts as they tried to rack up a lead at the earliest. The Karnataka batter was at his dynamic best as he put a stunned Bangladesh attack to the sword.

His 87-run stand with Virat Kohli (47 off 35) ensured that the middle order capitalised on the foundation provided by the top-three. Such was the intent of India's batters that both Rahul and Kohli, known more for their traditional approach, went hell for leather. The tone had been set in the post-lunch session by Yashasvi Jaiswal's blistering 51-ball 72 and his fiery opening stand with Rohit Sharma. The Indian captain had a brief stay at the crease but his 11-ball 23 had three sixes and sent out a statement that India were going for the kill. Shubman Gill (39 off 37) also got some quick runs while the batting promotion of Rishabh Pant didn't quite work.

India eventually declared at the fall of their ninth wicket, having batted just a shade under 35 overs for their total of 285 - a phenomenal scoring rate of 8.22 runs-per-over. Even by the yardstick of England's 'Bazball' methods, this was a couple of notches above, and the onslaught clearly left Bangladesh shocked. Mehidy Hasan (4-41) and Shakib Al Hasan (4-78) helped themselves to a bunch of wickets with the batters being in T20 mode. The visitors had a tricky period to negotiate towards stumps but ended up losing two wickets during this phase, both to Ravichandran Ashwin. While the first one of Zakir Hasan was a classic off-spinner's setup, the second of nightwatchman Hasan Mahmud came through an outrageous stroke.

All this meant that India ended the fourth day on a high with significant momentum in their favour. The day had started reasonably for Bangladesh despite losing three big wickets in the morning session. Mominul Haque (107*) kept his side in the hunt with a solid century but the left-hander had little support, particularly from the tail as Bangladesh fell from 224-6 to 233 all out.

For India, Jasprit Bumrah (3-50) was on the rampage today with adequate support from the other bowlers. It was also a landmark day for Ravindra Jadeja who got to 300 Test wickets, thereby getting himself into the elite club of players with the double of 3000 runs and 300 wickets in the longest format. The stats of the day paint a freak picture in itself - 437 runs were scored off the 85 overs bowled while a whopping 18 wickets also fell in the process. Bangladesh still trail by 26 with eight wickets in the shed. A draw still seems the most probable result but funnier things have happened on the final day in situations like these.

Brief scores: Bangladesh 233 and 26/2 (Ravichandran Ashwin 2-14) trail India 285/9 decl. (Yashasvi Jaiswal 72, KL Rahul 68; Mehidy Hasan 4-41, Shakib Al Hasan 4-78) by 26 runs