The Cricketer looks at the main talking points from day four of the fifth Test between England and India at the Kia Oval
India enjoyed a solid morning session, taking the wickets of Ben Duckett (54) and Ollie Pope (27).
But it could have and should have been even better as Mohammed Siraj squandered an opportunity to remove Harry Brook for just 19.
In fact, the bowler Prasidh Krishna was already celebrating when Siraj took the catch at fine leg before his fellow seamer lost his bearings and stepped on the boundary rope.
It meant that not only did the seamer cost his team a vital wicket, but also conceded six runs in the process, the second of Brook's innings.
The wholehearted Siraj had just re-entered the field of play after a well-earned break following a mammoth eight-over spell to start the day.
After all his efforts across the five Tests, he did not deserve to make a mistake that could define the match and series, but cricket is a cruel game, and Siraj was the victim on this occasion.
He did get to take the catch to remove Brook 92 runs later, but by that stage, the batter had a 10th Test century.
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Mohammed Siraj squandered the huge chance to get centurion Harry Brook on just 19 (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
For so much of the final day, England were cruising towards a surprisingly comfortable chase and win over India.
That was until the hosts suffered some late nerves, sparked largely by an excellent pressure-building effort from India's seamers.
After the ultra-aggressive Harry Brook was dismissed for 111, England's run-scoring momentum completely halted as the pressure mounted.
Jacob Bethell, playing just his second first-class game of the season, endured a difficult time of things during his five off 30 balls before he bottom-edged Prasidh Krishna onto his stumps.
And it was the tall seamer that provided the all-important wicket of Joe Root when he encouraged the batter to nibble at a wider delivery and edge through to wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel.
Some more excellent bowling to Jamie Smith and Jamie Overton meant the match goes into the final day with England needing 35 runs and India four wickets short of a victory that would tie the five-match series.
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Harry Brook celebrates his 10th Test century and first in the fourth innings of a Test (Getty Images)
Test cricketers are so often defined by what they do in the fourth innings of the match, given its bearing on the outcome of the contest.
So, it was vitally important to both Harry Brook and England that he managed to make his 10th Test century in the final innings of the fifth Test against India at the Kia Oval.
Even more importantly, it was the Yorkshireman's first fourth-innings century in his Test career, and when he reached 80 not out on the fourth day of this contest, it was his new highest score in the fourth innings of a Test.
He combined with his international and county teammate Joe Root in a 195-run stand, which proved to be match and series-defining.
It was also how he scored the runs that delighted the crowd with two sixes early in his knock. One of those was courtesy of Mohammed Siraj losing his bearings while taking a catch at fine leg when the batter was on just 19.
His innings ended as entertainingly as the 111 runs he managed, as he chipped Akash Deep to cover when the bat slipped out of his hand.
It remains to be seen whether it was a match-winning knock, but it was a very impressive effort.
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