I still think it might be a draw

What a final day we have in prospect. Day four probably ended in the sort of position most people expected at the start of the day, but nobody could have predicted that England would collapse so spectacularly. Such was their first innings lead that a score of 62-5 was not a time for huge jitters, but it was certainly a time for some concern.

Cue a remarkable partnership between Matt Prior and Stuart Broad. What a cricketer Prior has become. It is still a mystery why he cannot crack the one-day stuff, but he has made himself into maybe the finest batsman/wicketkeeper in Test cricket at the moment. Indeed I heard Ian Botham on TV commentary saying that he was the best today. I don’t always agree with Botham, but this might just be one of those rare occasions.

It does tickle me that there are still those around the county cricket who blather on about the many other wicketkeepers that should be taking Prior’s place. His keeping is fine. I never thought it was as poor as many made out in his early days. He had some difficult conditions in which to keep- the rasping heat of Sri Lanka and a horribly low pitch in Trinidad are a couple of examples. And we can often be a little snobbish about wicketkeeping in England, with all that old-fashioned, romantic nonsense about specialists who cannot bat. Prior is a gem.

And so is Broad. A tip of the cap to the England management for their selection of him in this match. So many people called for Tim Bresnan, and it was probably a close call, but they stuck with Broad and he has rewarded them royally. He has looked like the champion cricketer we know he can be. And it was little surprise that he took the only wicket this evening. He is on a roll, as they say.

How many more can England take tomorrow, though? There are so many factors to take into account. Will Gautam Gambhir bat? Will the pitch deteriorate? Will the ball swing? And, of course, Sachin Tendulkar can only bat after five wickets have been taken.

I’m inclined to predict a draw, not because I think England are incapable of winning, but rather because I do not trust the pitch to offer enough assistance. We’ve seen it happen too many times before in the recent past. But we also saw a wonderful finish- and a win for England- in the 2009 Ashes match.

What will it be? Your thoughts please..