Reliving 3 of the best resistances from the tail to win Test matches

Test cricket is the ultimate form of cricket, opinate pundits across the world. Although this format is losing its popularity with a rapid increase in T20 leagues across the world, Test cricket has never shied away from producing few of the most memorable moments for cricket fans - miraculous turnarounds, unexpected collapses, remarkable batting knocks, and fiery bowling spells.

The excitement of watching a Test match is heightened when the unexpected happens, doesn't it? When the top-order and the middle-order of a batting line-up are dismissed, it seems like a mere formality before the team is all-out. However, it is joyful to watch lower-order rising from the ashes to conjure a magical victory for their team.

We look at some instances, where the tail put up stunning resistances to conjure a Test match win from thin air in the most challenging of situations.

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#3 Inzamam-ul-Haq, Rashid Latif and Mushtaq Ahmed (Australia tour of Pakistan - Karachi, 1994)

This knock was a glimpse of the immense talent and maturity that Inzamam-ul-Haq would display over the next two decades

Australia 337 (Michael Bevan 82, Steve Waugh 73, Waqar Younis 3-75, Wasim Akram 3-75) and 232 (David Boon 114, Mark Waugh 61, Waqar Younis 4-69, Wasim Akram 5-63) lost to Pakistan 256 (Saeed Anwar 85, Jo Angel 3-51, Shane Warne 3-61) and 315 for 9 (Saeed Anwar 77, Inzamam-ul-Haq 58*, Shane Warne 5-89) by 1 wicket

This game deserves the title of a true Test cricket classic in an era when the last couple of wickets seldom made significant contributions to the team's scorecard.

Batting first, Australia piled up 337 runs in the first innings, courtesy valuable contributions from the likes of Steve Waugh, Michael Bevan, and Ian Healy. Pakistan's response began well, with Saeed Anwar and Aamir Sohail laying a healthy foundation for a big first-innings total. However, the middle-order collapsed at the hands of the spin duo - Shane Warne and Tim May, which meant that Australia had gained a healthy lead of 81 runs.

The Australian top order put up a fantastic show against a brilliant Pakistani bowling attack, led by a century from David Boon and a fifty from Mark Waugh. Nevertheless, Pakistan's pace spearheads - Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram skittled out the Australian middle-order and lower-order cheaply. Pakistan was set a target of 314 for the win.

The chase began well for Pakistan. Saeed Anwar, Aamir Sohail, and Saleem Malik batted watchfully, igniting hopes of an unlikely win. However, Shane Warne cut a swathe through Pakistan's middle-order in the final innings of the match, leaving Pakistan in tatters at 184 for seven.

Inzamam-ul-Haq and Rashid Latif were at the crease when Mark Taylor made a dubious decision. Despite the track turning square and one of Australia's lead pacers - Glenn Mcgrath not being able to bowl due to a hamstring injury, the Australian captain inexplicably opted for the new ball.

This allowed Rashid Latif to cash-in with an enterprising knock of 35 off 57 balls, putting up a 52-run partnership with Inzamam-ul-Haq for the ninth wicket. Suddenly a side that looked dead and buried, was in contention to win the game.

When Rashid Latif fell for 35, Pakistan still needed 56 runs with one wicket to spare. Mushtaq Ahmed, a genuine number 11, walked in to support Inzamam-ul-Haq.

The duo put forth an aggressive partnership of 53 runs in just 8 overs. Both Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mushtaq Ahmed tackled the turn that Shane Warne was extracting by using the depth of the crease.

Shane Warne looked lost amidst a cluster of square-cuts, late-cuts and short-arm pulls from the bats of Inzamam and Mushtaq.

With 3 runs required for the win, Inzamam advanced down the track to a delivery that was tossed up by Shane Warne and landed in the rough outside the leg stump. The delivery spun sharply to beat Inzamam's bat. In an anti-climatic end, Ian Healy missed a difficult stumping, and the ball went away to the fence for 4 byes, resulting in heartbreak for the Aussies and one of Pakistan's most savoured Test wins.

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#2 Ben Stokes and Jack Leach (The Ashes - Headingley, 2019)

Ben Stokes brought back memories of Sir Ian Botham with an all-round performance that won him a well-deserved Man of the Match award

Australia 179 (Marnus Labuschagne 74, David Warner 61, Jofra Archer 6-45) and 246 (Marnus Labuschagne 80, Ben Stokes 3-56) lost to England 67 (Josh Hazlewood 5-30) and 362 for 9 (Ben Stokes 135*, Joe Root 77, Joe Denly 50) by one wicket

England came into the third Test with Australia poised to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. Joe Root won the toss and put the Aussies into bat. It seemed like a great decision with the Aussies being dismissed for 179 runs. Jofra Archer was the pick of the English bowlers with a six-wicket haul in his second Test match. However, the English innings lasted for a mere 28 overs. The pace trio of Hazlewood, Pattinson, and Cummins bundled the Aussies out for 67 runs, gaining a lead of 112 runs.

Marnus Labuschagne played a defensive 80-run knock in the second innings, taking Australia to what seemed like a match-winning total, especially considering what had transpired in the first innings. Ben Stokes was the most effective bowler with an economical 3-wicket spell. England was set a target of 359.

Jason Roy and Rory Burns fell early, dismissing all hopes of a miracle. However, Joe Root and Joe Denly joined hands to stitch a 126-run partnership that brought back confidence in the English dressing room. Joe Denly was dismissed late on day 3, bringing Ben Stokes to the crease. When Joe Root fell early on day 4, the match seemed all but lost.

Ben Stokes, who had played an uncharacteristically slow inning till then, took up the responsibility of taking England to victory. He played second fiddle to Jonny Bairstow, whose aggressive innings put the Australians on the back foot.

Bairstow's dismissal sparked a collapse. Buttler was run-out in a terrible mix-up with Stokes calling for a non-existent single. Chris Woakes chipped one straight to Wade at short cover. Jofra Archer seemed intent on slogging every delivery, only to hand a simple catch to deep mid-wicket off Nathan Lyon. Broad never looked comfortable during his stay at the crease.

With England still needing 73 runs for the win, Ben Stokes broke the shackles with three sixes off Nathan Lyon (which even included a switch hit) and consecutive sixes off Hazlewood, bringing back loud cheers in the stadium. Every run was being cheered by an enthusiastic English crowd at Headingley. Stokes got to a well deserved century, but the game was not finished yet.

There were several nerve-wracking moments in the last 3 overs. The first ball of the 124th over was sliced to third man by Ben Stokes, only for Marcus Harris to drop a reasonably simple catch. The last ball of the over skidded onto the pads of Jack Leach. The Australians wasted a review.

The moment of the game came in the fifth ball of the 125th over. Nathan Lyon bowled a flighted delivery that pitched on the rough created outside the off-stump. Stokes brought out a reverse sweep to counter the turn and timed it crisply but straight to short third man. Leach was three quarters down the pitch and an accurate throw to the bowlers end made it seem like the game was done and dusted. But Nathan Lyon had other plans, as he fumbled the ball (and perhaps, the match).

Ben Stokes went for a sweep off the last ball of the 125th over. A loud appeal was turned down. The Australians had used up their reviews. To their regret, hawk-eye indicated that the delivery would have hit middle and leg-stump.

Jack Leach survived two hostile deliveries from Pat Cummins and scampered through for a single off the third ball. The fourth ball was smashed by Ben Stokes through the vacant cover region for a boundary bringing up an emotional victory for the Englishmen. Ben Stokes was down on his knees, with tears in his eyes and the entire stadium shouting his name in joy.

#1 Kusal Perera and Vishwa Fernando (Sri Lanka tour of South Africa - Durban, 2019)

Perhaps the Greatest Test match innings ever from Kusal Janith Perera

Sri Lanka 191 (Kusal Perera 51, Dale Steyn 4-48) and 304 for 9 (Kusal Perera 153*, Dhananjaya de Silva 48) beat South Africa 235 (Quinton de Kock 80, Vishwa Fernando 4-62) and 259 (Francois du Plessis 90, Lasith Embuldeniya 5-66) by one wicket

The Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne won the toss and put the Proteas into bat. Vishwa Fernando and Kasun Rajitha bowled with discipline to dismiss the Proteas for 235 runs, with Quinton de Kock playing a counter-attacking knock of 80 runs. The Sri Lankans were dismissed for a meagre 191 runs, with Kusal Perera top-scoring with 51 runs. Dale Steyn, with 4 wickets, was the destroyer-in-chief.

The Sri Lankan bowlers Vishwa Fernando and Lasith Embuldeniya picked up 4 and 5 wickets respectively in the second innings, restricting the Proteas to 259 runs. A target of 305 was a big ask, especially against a bowling attack with the likes of Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada.

The Sri Lankan batting collapsed for the umpteenth time. Little did we know, that what would follow would be one amongst the greatest fourth innings knocks ever played in the history of Test match cricket.

Chasing 304, Kusal Perera walked in when the scorecard read 52-3. Despite Sri Lanka was reduced to 110-5 Kusal Perera kept on playing aggressively as usual. He was joined by Dhananjaya de Silva, with whom he stitched a valuable 96-run partnership. Sri Lanka needed 98 runs for the win when De Silva lost his wicket. 3 wickets fell rapidly.

When number 11 Vishwa Fernando joined Perera, Sri Lanka still needed 78 runs to win. Vishwa Fernando entirely focussed on surviving the next 95 balls saw Kusal Perera single-handedly script Sri Lanka's greatest Test victory. Sixes and fours off Keshav Maharaj, Duanne Olivier, Kagiso Rabada and Dale Steyn followed.

Vishwa Fernando, with all his might, survived 27 deliveries. Perera got to his century, but the landmark meant nothing to him. Luck seemed to favour the Lankans as Dean Elgar missed a throw at the stumps that would have run Fernando out. The Proteas were tactically erroneous. Keshav Maharaj was possibly over-bowled and there were plenty of fielding mistakes. The Proteas had no answer to Perera, who had switched into T20 mode. The moment finally arrived. Sri Lanka won the game with a wicket to spare.

This knock was a reflection of Perera's tactical awareness, ability to switch modes when necessary, and his immense self-belief.

A Test match for the centuries. An innings for the ages.

Perhaps the greatest innings ever in Test cricket.