5 highest 4th innings totals that didn't result in a Test win
For all the thrill around Twenty20, it is but fleeting. For all the drama which ensues during the 40 overs, it feels rather incomplete and few might say even shallow.
Perhaps, this is the reason why Test cricket is still the pinnacle, perhaps this is why it is the purest form, it is the format where the players want to test their mettle.
Test cricket throws different challenges at you, and how you react defines the character. Talking about character, what makes this format immune to all the impurity which is taking place elsewhere is that over the five days, there are so many changes to the context of the game, that it can easily be compared to life.
On a pitch which is perhaps at his most weary in the fourth innings, scoring runs is no meek play and this why runs in the fourth innings are considered to be not only tough but also in many ways is match-winning.
However, despite all the efforts, despite accumulating a relatively high score, teams have not tasted success and here in this slider, we take a look at five such instances when high scores in the fourth innings were not enough to warrant success.
#5 New Zealand vs England, 2008
Back in 2008, England toured New Zealand and this particular match was the third Test played out at Napier.
England won the toss and elected to bat first on a track which looked a proper belter. On the back of a stellar century by Kevin Pietersen, the visitors posted 253 runs in their first innings.
The hosts replied with a lot of jitters as left-arm seamer Ryan Sidebottom wreaked havoc and picked up seven wickets to dismantle New Zealand for a paltry 168 runs.
England responded with a lot of positivity in their second essay as Andrew Strauss and Ian Bell scored centuries to push the total to 467/7 when captain Michael Vaughan declared the innings.
It was a steep mountain to climb for the hosts as they began the chase of 553 runs. It was a stellar effort from the Kiwis as five of their batsmen cross the 50-run mark, but bereft of any century they were dismissed for 431 in their final innings.
England won the match by a convincing margin of 121 runs.