Summary Alastair Cook's defiant 168 not out forced first England-India Test into a fifth day in Ahmedabad.
Resuming on 111-0 at the beginning of day four England still faced a uphill task to avoid an innings defeat, but captain Cook batted throughout the day - aided by Matt Prior s resilient 84 not out - to give England fans hope of an unlikely draw.
England s middle order struggled with the Indian attack and Matt Prior came to the crease with his side at 199-5, still needing over 130 runs short of forcing India to bat again.
Alastair Cook s defiant 168 not out has forced the first Test between England and India into a fifth and final day in Ahmedabad and given the tourists a glimmer of hope of salvaging a result
Compton, Trott, Pietersen, Bell and Patel all fell to Ashwin or Ojha for a combined 76 before Cook and Prior steadied the ship and dragged England to ten runs ahead going into the final day.
Cook has now scored a century in each of his three Tests as England captain, adding to the 173 and 109 he made during Tests against Bangladesh in 2010. Cook s eight hours and 22 minutes at the crease is also the longest individual innings by an England player in a follow-
Ahmedabad: Captain Alastair Cook led a remarkable England fightback with a heroic unbeaten 168 as the defiant visitors wiped out India`s mammoth first innings lead with a gritty batting display to raise hopes of saving the first cricket Test here on Sunday.
The 27-year-old Cook displayed immense concentration and skill to not only notch up his 21st Test century under pressure but also keep his team in the game as he steered England to 340 for five at close on the penultimate day which saw the Sardar Patel track ease out quite a bit.
The England captain found an able ally in Matt Prior (84) as the duo put on an unfinished 141-run partnership to leave the Indians frustrated.
The spinners, who were expected to do the bulk of the damage, found it difficult to get the wickets.
