Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli Go Ballistic at Umpires as Bad Light Stops Play on Day 4: WATCH

It’s not over till it’s over, and when the margins are so fine, the tensions rise. One could state the it may have overflowed today as Indian skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were left fuming at the umpires who called off the day’s play earlier than planned due to a bout of bad light, leaving the Indians enraged.

After being bundled out for just 46 runs in the first innings, the hosts came back stronger in their second batting innings where they smashed 462 runs thanks to the brilliant efforts of Sarfaraz Khan (150), Rishabh Pant (99), Virat Kohli (70) and Rohit Sharma (52) respectively to help put up a fight.

Despite their best efforts, India could manage to only save face, putting up a meagre target of 107 runs for the Kiwis to chase in the final innings of the match.

With a little more than a day’s worth of play left, India were looking to strike early to rattle the NZ batters, in their quest to pull off a task that had been done by them only once before: defend a total of 107.

Jasprit Bumrah came racing in with the new ball, instantly menacing NZ skipper Tom Latham with swingers galore, almost getting the better of him on an LBW appeal which India lost.

But, a sudden sheen of darkness plagues the skies, as rains neared, leading to the umpires calling off the game temporarily with around 15 minutes of game time for the day left.

The decision enraged Rohit and Kohli, who went up to the umpires in protest, urging them to allow the game to continue on as India looked to chip away at the Kiwi top-order before the day was done.

A heated argument ensued between the Indians and the umpires, with the Indian team refusing to go into the dressing room till rains eventually followed, which ultimately drew the curtains for the day’s play.

Now, India are left with a one whole day to try their best to defend their total of 106, if they are to seal a historic victory against the Kiwis.

India would have to achieve something highly unlikely, to secure a win in the opening Test at Bengaluru. The Indian team has to defend 107 runs by picking up all 10 wickets in the final day’s play.

Statistics show that the lowest target defended by the Indian team was against Australia in the 2004 Test that took place at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai where India defended a total of 107 runs. India’s spin trio of Harbhajan Singh, Anil Kumble and Murali Kartik were the standout performers in that game where they picked up 5,6 and 7 wickets respectively to help snatch the win.

The Indian team would have to replicate the heroics of 2004 should they be able to take a series lead. Just as Jasprit Bumrah was finding his groove with the new ball, bad light resulted in the game being stopped much to the displeasure of Virat Kohli and Rohit. Not too long after, rain started pouring in and stumps were eventually called after just four deliveries into the final innings.