Chris Woakes backs England to pull off miracle run chase against India

Chris Woakes is backing England to pull off a record run chase on what promises to be a dramatic final day in the fourth Test against India at The Oval.

Fifties from Rishabh Pant and Shardul Thakur took India to a second-innings total of 466 and set England a daunting target of 368.

But openers Rory Burns and Haseeb Hameed held firm in to leave England on 77-0 at stumps, with the hosts needing a further 291 runs for an unlikely win and a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.

England's highest fourth-innings winning total was the Ben Stokes-inspired 362-9 against Australia at Headingley in 2019, with their highest victorious chase at The Oval the 263-9 they made against Australia in 1902.

But Woakes said England can draw on their monumental 2019 Ashes win and last year's successful chase of 277 against Pakistan - in which he scored a decisive unbeaten 84 - for inspiration.

"This team has done special things over the last few years. We've got the belief we can go and get the win," Woakes said.

"A lot of hard work still needs to be done. You can draw on those experiences, looking at what we are capable of. It's about belief.

"Everyone will agree that we can go and get the runs - there will be no doubts about that.

“Joe Root will speak as captain, Spoons (Chris Silverwood) will speak as coach, but I think everyone will be in agreement about the fact that we can go on and get the runs."

After 13 wickets fell on an eventful first day, both teams have since found wickets harder to come by.

England's attack grew weary as India's lower order plundered boundaries, with Thakur bludgeoning seven fours and a six during his 72-ball 60 to add to his first-innings 57.

But Woakes, who took 3-83 in India's second innings after making 50 in England's first-innings total of 290, believes The Oval pitch is better than the Old Trafford surface on which England chased 277 against Pakistan last year.

And after more than a year away from Test cricket due to injury and Covid quarantines, he is relishing the prospect of a tense final day.

"I've been desperate to be a part of the series. It's been exciting, a great comeback into Test cricket," he said.

"The atmosphere will be great and that's where you want to be as a player."

Meanwhile India batting coach Vikram Rathour hailed Thakur following the all-rounder's third fifty in four Tests.

"He's somebody who works really hard on his batting, and I think his biggest asset is his temperament," Rathour said.

"Very impressive, he's already played three very important innings in a short span. He can play a big role in Indian cricket in the coming times."

Gender pay parity on track in the UAE

The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.

"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."

Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.

"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.

As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.