Phenomenal Rishabh Pant plots India's fight back with game-changing ton on day 1
Birmingham, Jul 1: Rishabh Pant played a knock for the ages to turn the tables on England and take India to an imposing 338 for seven on a rain-hit day one of the rescheduled fifth Test here on Friday.
At 98 for five, India were staring down the barrel but Pant (146 off 111 balls) scripted a remarkable turnaround in the company of Ravindra Jadeja (83 batting off 163) as the duo shared a match changing 222-run stand off 239 balls.
Pant, who rendered the England bowlers helpless, hammered 20 boundaries and four sixes, in his awe-inspiring effort.
The rain in the morning meant only 73 overs could be bowled on the opening day.
Having faced criticism for his struggles in white-ball cricket recently, Pant continued his love affair with the red-ball format by smashing his fifth century overall and fourth in overseas conditions.
The conditions and match situation was against him but he once again thrived on it to leave the opposition frustrated.
As only he could, he danced down the track against the great James Anderson, reverse scooped him but also played conventional strokes, including the straight drives and back foot punches, enroute to the fastest hundred (89 balls) by an Indian wicketkeeper.
In the nervous 90s, he fell on the ground while going aerial over Jack Leach but that still fetched him a four before reaching three figures in the following over.
Stokes fancied Leach's chances against Pant but the ploy failed miserably as the southpaw collected boundaries off the left-arm spinner at will. Leach ended up with day's figures of 0/71 in nine overs. Pant went ballistic in what happened to be Leach's last over of the day, clobbering him two sixes and as many fours.
With a couple of hundreds in England, one each in Australia and South Africa, Pant has already walked into the list of the finest wicketkeeper-batters to have come out of India.
The 24-year-old's epic innings came to an end towards close of play with part-timer Joe Root providing the much needed breakthrough.
Jadeja, who enjoyed Pant's audacious stroke from the other end, also played a major role in India's remarkable recovery and produced some delightful drives on the way.
After overs were lost in the first two sessions due to rain, the evening session was played in bright sunshine.
Pant and Jadeja's counter-attacking partnership had helped India recover to 174 for five at tea after the visitors lost half their side shortly after lunch.
Rain delayed the start of the second session by an hour and England were all over India soon after play resumed.
While Anderson did the damage in the morning, Matthew Potts got the prized wicket of an out of form Virat Kohli (11) and a shaky Hanuma Vihari (20) post lunch to put England on top.
Vihari was the first to go after Potts trapped him in front of the stumps with a full ball that darted back sharply. In his following over, Potts sent back Kohli, who dragged one on to his stumps in his half-hearted attempt to leave the ball.
Shreyas Iyer (15 off 11 balls), playing his first Test outside India, started on an aggressive note by collecting three fours off Potts. However, Anderson and the support staff had done their homework on Iyer, who has had issues against the short ball.
The 39-year-old pacer angled one around the rib cage area that induced a faint edge on way to Sam Billings, who took a brilliant one handed catch diving full-stretched to his left.
India looked down and out at that stage and fresh lease of life was infused in the innings by the two southpaws, Pant and Jadeja.
Pant made his intent loud and clear by advancing and smashing Anderson down the ground. Jadeja too played his strokes with the highlight being the straight drive and cover drive off Broad.
Earlier, England's most decorated pacer Anderson produced probing spells in the rain-hit morning session to reduce India to 53 for two. Rain forced the lunch break 20 minutes before time.
Anderson had openers Shubman Gill (17 off 24) and Cheteshwar Pujara (13 off 46) caught by Zak Crawley at second slip to give England the advantage after Stokes opted to 'chase' at Edgbaston.
India could have been three down had Crawley held on to a tough chance presented by Vihari off Matthew Potts.
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National Synodal Assembly 2026 begins in Bengaluru with over 220 delegates
Bengaluru: The Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) on May 1 inaugurated its National Synodal Assembly 2026 at St. John’s Medical College, bringing together more than 220 delegates from across the country under the theme Synodal Pilgrims of Hope.
The assembly is part of the global synodal process initiated in 2021 by Pope Francis, which calls for greater participation, dialogue and shared responsibility within the Church. In India, the process has involved consultations at diocesan, regional and national levels.
Participants at the assembly include two Cardinals, 25 Bishops, 65 priests, more than 20 women religious, and over 100 lay faithful, including youth and women leaders.
The gathering began with a Eucharistic celebration led by Filipe Neri Ferrão. In his homily, he described the assembly as a moment of grace and discernment and called on delegates to walk together in prayer, listening and missionary commitment.
He spoke about the importance of the Risen Christ in the mission of the Church and urged the faithful to be witnesses of the Gospel. Referring to the conversion of St Paul, he said every baptised person has a role in spreading the message of Christ. He also highlighted the example of St Joseph the Worker, stressing the dignity of labour and the call to holiness in everyday life.
The formal inauguration included the invocation of the Holy Spirit through Veni Creator Spiritus and the lighting of the ceremonial lamp. Deputy Secretary General Fr. Stephen Alathara welcomed the delegates and described the gathering as a spiritual journey.
In his presidential address, Cardinal Ferrão referred to the CCBI pastoral plan titled Journeying Towards a Synodal Church: Mission 2033 and called on participants to build on the vision outlined at the 36th Plenary Assembly held in Bhubaneswar in 2025.
Delegates will reflect on four key themes identified from 16 pastoral priorities: interreligious dialogue and peacebuilding, inclusion of the excluded, poverty and integral ecology, and support for children and youth.
The discussions are being conducted through a method of spiritual conversation aimed at encouraging listening, dialogue and collective decision-making. The focus is on translating these discussions into practical actions within the Church.
The assembly also looks ahead to the Jubilee Year 2033, which will mark 2,000 years of the Redemption, and aims to strengthen the Church’s mission in the coming years.
Further consultations are scheduled for September 2026, with the process expected to conclude at the 38th Plenary Assembly of the CCBI in January 2027.
Organisers said the assembly seeks to strengthen unity within the Church and promote participation of all sections, including women and youth, in shaping its future direction.
