Lokesh Rahul's brilliant 199 ensured India are well within touching distance of England's first innings score. A 161 run partnership between Rahul and Karun Nair salvaged India's day after Pujara and Kohli threw away their wickets.
Earlier, Parthiv and Rahul put on 152 runs for the opening wicket but one breakthrough led to two other wickets as India's most dependable batsmen were back in the hut with the score at 211. Karun and Rahul then fought through some reverse swing generated by Stokes and a good spell from Moeen Ali. Rahul notched up his fourth Test hundred but a panicky moment at 199 meant he could not complete his first ever double hundred in Tests.
Karun Nair made use of a reprieve by the English skipper to post his highest Test score and will have a chance to get a maiden hundred tomorrow.
Here are the talking points from day 3 of the 5th Test.
#5 Parthiv Patel pushing Saha hard
Parthiv Patel has made his surprise return to the Indian Test squad count with some impactful knocks. Sent in to open in place of Vijay, who injured his shoulder, Patel looked composed, revealing little fatigue from keeping for 157.2 overs.
He played Broad and Ball with perfection and took on the spinners with ease. He looked well settled after resting his tired calf muscles overnight, and was assured in defence and attack.
The 71 he made was his highest Test score and the comeback is proving to be a spectacular one for the Indian keeper. His antics with the bat and good keeping is sure to put the selectors in a spot of bother when picking the squad for the series against Australia.
#4 Rahul makes his 4th Test hundred but falls 1 short of double
Lokesh Rahul has been a great find for India at the top of the order in Tests. His supreme self-confidence, derived as a result of mingling with the best like Kohli and de Villiers in the Royal Challengers Bangalore dressing room, is making him an even finer prospect.
He smashed his fourth Test hundred, but fell agonisingly short of a double hundred, as he succumbed to poor shot selection while on 199. Rahul got able company from Parthiv Patel as the duo made a strong start in response to England's 477. The pair put on 152 for the opening wicket, the first 100+ partnership in 32 innings for India.
Rahul was confident against a persistent Broad and also reverse swept Rashid and Moeen with confidence. His feet moved better than it did previously, thereby improving his timing and judgement.
#3 Kohli falls cheaply
It is a rarity to see Kohli fail in an innings in 2016. Add to that the fact that the Chennai wicket is one of the best batting surfaces this series, and that Kohli's failure a mighty surprise. For a batsman who has scored three double hundreds this year, a cheap dismissal on a belter of a pitch is shocking.
However, credit has to go to Stuart Broad, England's best bowler on display in this Test, who kept bowling outside Kohli's off-stump and surprised him with a slow leg cutter that he looked to drive only to gift a catch to Jennings at short cover.
Such has been Kohli's authority over bowlers this year that a dismissal of this sort was not on the cards. But Broad was planning for exactly this when placing Jennings there and executed his plans to perfection.
#2 Karnataka boys fight it out
After Parthiv was dismissed by Ali, the floodgates seemed to open for England as they began to attack their way through India's batting line-up.
Rahul needed some able assistance from his partners, especially since two dependable batsmen had given away their wickets. Karun Nair, a familiar figure to Rahul, gave him some much-needed support to get close to England's score.
The pair put on a very important century-stand that helped India ease any tension of falling behind England's huge score. Cook was partly responsible for Karun Nair's stay at the crease as he dropped a sitter off Jake Ball when Nair was on 34. He remained unbeaten on 71 at the end of the day.
#1 India well on course to take lead
Rahul's terrific 199 and Karun Nair's half-century ensured India are well within reach of England's score and look set to take a lead in the first innings. On a friendly batting wicket, after losing the likes of Kohli and Pujara cheaply, India needed their youngsters to step up.
The young guns did indeed make the crucial contribution and England's prospects of winning a Test on this tour looks increasingly bleak. Their inability to create chances and hold on to ones that they do create is costing them dear in this series.
They have been poor but a 4-0 scoreline would not do justice to their efforts on this tour. They have batted much better than many visiting teams in recent times but their bowling has let them down terribly.
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