The England cricket team were in India preparing for this Test Series against India at the time of the Mumbai attacks. The attacks caused England to fly back home, in two minds as to whether or not to continue with the Series.
To their credit, they blew a raspberry in the face of terrorism by deciding to return to India to go ahead with the Series.
Cricket is a religion to the 1 billion Indians, and there is probably no better way for the country's wounds to heal than an international cricket Series.
The England cricketers were treated as semi-heroes by the Indian public when they decided to return instead of deciding not to go ahead with the Series. The big screen in this stadium on the Bay of Bengal flashed up text messages written by the Indian fans - one read "Thank U England."
The fourth day of the First Test has ended with England still on top, despite a spirited India fightback.
England decided to end their second innings with a total of 311-9, meaning that India required 387 runs in their Second innings to win.
India ended today on 131-1, meaning they still require 256 runs tomorrow - the final day of the match - for victory.
It's not impossible, but an England win and a draw are more likely than an India win at the moment....
By Oliver Brett
The BBC
FOURTH DAY OF THE FIRST TEST, INDIA VS ENGLAND
1st Innings
England: 316
India: 241
2nd Innings
England: 311-9 dec
India: 131-1
India require another 256 runs to win
India: Sehwag, Gambhir, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Yuvraj, Dhoni (C/W), Harbhajan, Zaheer, I Sharma, Mishra
England: Cook, Strauss, Bell, Pietersen (C), Collingwood, Flintoff, Prior (W), S Harmison, Anderson, Panesar, Swann
Sehwag completely transformed the Test with a furious onslaught, scoring 83
India turned the tables on England in dramatic fashion through a blistering innings from Virender Sehwag late on day four of the first Test in Chennai.
Sehwag hit four sixes in his 83 off 68 balls as India finished the day on 131-1, needing a further 256 to win.
The hosts faced a massive target of 387 after England declared on 311-9.
Andrew Strauss hit his second hundred of the match and Paul Collingwood also made a century but England made only 57 runs between lunch and tea.
The highest score successfully chased to win a Test in India is 276, achieved by West Indies in Delhi in 1987. A year earlier, in Chennai, India tied a match against Australia when they were bowled out for 347, needing 348 to win.
However, the extraordinary striking of Sehwag in the final session on Sunday briefly thrust India into the position of clear favourites.
His first 50 runs occupied just 32 balls - putting it in the top-10 of fastest Test fifties - but he was finally pegged back later on before spinner Graeme Swann trapped him leg-before.
His fellow opener Gautam Gambhir, lucky to survive an appeal for a bat-pad catch off Swann on 21, was 41 at stumps with the out-of-form Rahul Dravid on two.
There was plenty happening for the bowlers on an ugly, worn wicket to give England encouragement that they can win the match.
But India, with so much batting to come, also have a fine opportunity to go 1-0 up in this two-match series.
England had begun the day in a strong position - leading by 247 with seven wickets in hand. And as Strauss (73 not out overnight) and Collingwood (60) continued to nudge the bowlers around over after over, their dominance only increased despite a depressingly slow over-rate.
Boundaries remained rare, one of the best coming when Strauss moved to 91 with a back-foot force off Harbhajan that took England's total to 200.
Having shown such supreme concentration for so long, Strauss was on 96 when he almost gave it all away, top-edging a sweep off Amit Mishra just over Dravid at leg-slip.
ENGLAND'S DOUBLE CENTURIONS
CAG Russell 140 & 111 Eng v SA Durban 1923
H Sutcliffe 176 & 127 Eng v Aus Melbourne 1925
WR Hammond 119* & 177 Eng v Aus Adelaide 1929
H Sutcliffe 104 & 109* Eng v SA The Oval 1929
E Paynter 117 & 100 Eng v SA Johannesburg 1938
DCS Compton 147 & 103* Eng v Aus Adelaide 1947
GA Gooch 333 & 123 Eng v India Lord's 1990
AJ Stewart 118 & 143 Eng v WI Bridgetown 1994
MP Vaughan 103 & 101* Eng v WI Lord's 2004
ME Trescothick 105 & 107 Eng v WI Edgbaston 2004
AJ Strauss 123 & 108 Eng v Ind Chennai 2008
* denotes not out
But he finally got to the landmark, his 14th in Test cricket, half an hour before lunch when hitting Zaheer Khan into a space on the leg-side.
It had come off 213 balls with just seven fours, and he became the 10th Englishman, and first since Marcus Trescothick in 2004, to hit centuries in both innings in a Test.
Perhaps more significantly, he was first English batsman and only the seventh non-Asian to do it in the subcontinent, joining Everton Weekes, Bob Simpson, Allan Border, Gary Kirsten, Brian Lara and Jacques Kallis.
At lunch, England had moved the scoreboard along to 244-3, holding a lead of 319.
Collingwood needed seven more runs after the interval for his century, and the single that got him there - tapping a shortish ball from Harbhajan for a single to fine leg - encapsulated the manner of his innings.
It had been a super effort from a batsman whose presence in the England side has been criticised.
The Strauss-Collingwood partnership finally realised 214 runs, the best for the fourth wicket by any team in Chennai and by any England team in India.
But the game entered a sterile period when England's batsman resisted the urge to attack.
The bowlers lost time in which they could have tested India's top order as Strauss and Collingwood each departed on 108, and Andrew Flintoff and Graeme Swann faced 32 balls for a combined 11 runs.
While the exhausted Strauss, who drove Harbhajan to cover, and Collingwood, lbw to a Zaheer Khan yorker, could be partially forgiven, it was hard to be as sympathetic to the batsmen below them in the order.
Neither Flintoff, who edged Ishant Sharma behind, nor Swann, who was bowled by Zaheer, were out attempting the big shots England's position demanded. And even when they were out, Kevin Pietersen still wanted more runs, although they were coming so slowly.
Steve Harmison was bowled on the stroke of tea, and after the interval Matt Prior, who hit 33 off 56 balls, speared a catch to cover.
Strauss and Collingwood both completed centuries on Sunday
Pietersen finally decided to call in the batsmen, and Sehwag took the declaration as his cue to set up an intriguing final day.
His early striking was impressive - and the crowd of 10,000 or so lapped it all up as a series of blows through the off-side off the pacemen was followed by a monstrous six in Monty Panesar's first over.
Alastair Cook put Sehwag down on 26, however, and he got another dose of luck on 65 when umpire Daryl Harper declined a decent lbw shout from Swann.
The off-spinner, bowling so much better than Harbhajan had, might also have seen Gambhir fall in his first over, when England appealed for a catch off bat and glove.
But Swann went on to take his third wicket in an impressive debut when a ball kept low out of the rough as it turned into Sehwag's pads. Harper took a few seconds to give the decision, but crucially for England he did.
Andrew Strauss starts day four in Chennai on 73 not out, aiming to help England build on their overnight total of 172-3 and 247-run lead
Strauss moves steadily towards his second century of the match and secures his 14th Test hundred with a single off Zaheer Khan
Strauss's 213-ball ton means he is the first Englishman to hit two centuries in a Test in Asia and the 10th to hit two hundreds in a Test
India show increasing frustration as Collingwood and Strauss extend their stand to 200 and England's lead to 319 at lunch
Collingwood joins Strauss in completing his century - his seventh in Tests - as England extend their advantage in Chennai
Ishant Sharma celebrates after Andrew Flintoff edges the ball to wicketkeeper Mahendra Dhoni for four as England lose momentum
Collingwood's defiant 250-ball innings finally comes to an end when Zaheer traps him lbw for 108 but there's no sign of a declaration
Graeme Swann is clean-bowled by a Zaheer inswinger and England's batsmen are struggling for runs as India slow the over-rate
Zaheer rearranges Harmison's stumps and tea is taken with England 301-8 - after a session which saw just 57 runs come off 22.5 overs
Matt Prior bats well for 33 and England finally declare 17 minutes after tea on 311-9 - setting India 387 to win
Virender Sehwag gets India off to a fantastic start - 45 runs come off the first five overs - to the delight of the home fans
Sehwag hits Panesar for a huge six and soon brings up his 50 off 32 balls - the ninth fastest in Test history
England skipper Kevin Pietersen consoles Panesar after the spinner suffers at the hands of Sehwag's blistering attack
Gautam Gambhir joins the onslaught as India bring up the 100 off 108 balls and England are unable to stop the flow of runs
Swann ends Sehwag's spectacular 68-ball innings on 83 and India finish the day on 131-1, needing a further 256 to win
news.bbc.co.uk/sport
To their credit, they blew a raspberry in the face of terrorism by deciding to return to India to go ahead with the Series.
Cricket is a religion to the 1 billion Indians, and there is probably no better way for the country's wounds to heal than an international cricket Series.
The England cricketers were treated as semi-heroes by the Indian public when they decided to return instead of deciding not to go ahead with the Series. The big screen in this stadium on the Bay of Bengal flashed up text messages written by the Indian fans - one read "Thank U England."
The fourth day of the First Test has ended with England still on top, despite a spirited India fightback.
England decided to end their second innings with a total of 311-9, meaning that India required 387 runs in their Second innings to win.
India ended today on 131-1, meaning they still require 256 runs tomorrow - the final day of the match - for victory.
It's not impossible, but an England win and a draw are more likely than an India win at the moment....
By Oliver Brett
The BBC
FOURTH DAY OF THE FIRST TEST, INDIA VS ENGLAND
1st Innings
England: 316
India: 241
2nd Innings
England: 311-9 dec
India: 131-1
India require another 256 runs to win
India: Sehwag, Gambhir, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Yuvraj, Dhoni (C/W), Harbhajan, Zaheer, I Sharma, Mishra
England: Cook, Strauss, Bell, Pietersen (C), Collingwood, Flintoff, Prior (W), S Harmison, Anderson, Panesar, Swann
Sehwag completely transformed the Test with a furious onslaught, scoring 83
India turned the tables on England in dramatic fashion through a blistering innings from Virender Sehwag late on day four of the first Test in Chennai.
Sehwag hit four sixes in his 83 off 68 balls as India finished the day on 131-1, needing a further 256 to win.
The hosts faced a massive target of 387 after England declared on 311-9.
Andrew Strauss hit his second hundred of the match and Paul Collingwood also made a century but England made only 57 runs between lunch and tea.
The highest score successfully chased to win a Test in India is 276, achieved by West Indies in Delhi in 1987. A year earlier, in Chennai, India tied a match against Australia when they were bowled out for 347, needing 348 to win.
However, the extraordinary striking of Sehwag in the final session on Sunday briefly thrust India into the position of clear favourites.
His first 50 runs occupied just 32 balls - putting it in the top-10 of fastest Test fifties - but he was finally pegged back later on before spinner Graeme Swann trapped him leg-before.
His fellow opener Gautam Gambhir, lucky to survive an appeal for a bat-pad catch off Swann on 21, was 41 at stumps with the out-of-form Rahul Dravid on two.
There was plenty happening for the bowlers on an ugly, worn wicket to give England encouragement that they can win the match.
But India, with so much batting to come, also have a fine opportunity to go 1-0 up in this two-match series.
England had begun the day in a strong position - leading by 247 with seven wickets in hand. And as Strauss (73 not out overnight) and Collingwood (60) continued to nudge the bowlers around over after over, their dominance only increased despite a depressingly slow over-rate.
Boundaries remained rare, one of the best coming when Strauss moved to 91 with a back-foot force off Harbhajan that took England's total to 200.
Having shown such supreme concentration for so long, Strauss was on 96 when he almost gave it all away, top-edging a sweep off Amit Mishra just over Dravid at leg-slip.
CAG Russell 140 & 111 Eng v SA Durban 1923
H Sutcliffe 176 & 127 Eng v Aus Melbourne 1925
WR Hammond 119* & 177 Eng v Aus Adelaide 1929
H Sutcliffe 104 & 109* Eng v SA The Oval 1929
E Paynter 117 & 100 Eng v SA Johannesburg 1938
DCS Compton 147 & 103* Eng v Aus Adelaide 1947
GA Gooch 333 & 123 Eng v India Lord's 1990
AJ Stewart 118 & 143 Eng v WI Bridgetown 1994
MP Vaughan 103 & 101* Eng v WI Lord's 2004
ME Trescothick 105 & 107 Eng v WI Edgbaston 2004
AJ Strauss 123 & 108 Eng v Ind Chennai 2008
* denotes not out
But he finally got to the landmark, his 14th in Test cricket, half an hour before lunch when hitting Zaheer Khan into a space on the leg-side.
It had come off 213 balls with just seven fours, and he became the 10th Englishman, and first since Marcus Trescothick in 2004, to hit centuries in both innings in a Test.
Perhaps more significantly, he was first English batsman and only the seventh non-Asian to do it in the subcontinent, joining Everton Weekes, Bob Simpson, Allan Border, Gary Kirsten, Brian Lara and Jacques Kallis.
At lunch, England had moved the scoreboard along to 244-3, holding a lead of 319.
Collingwood needed seven more runs after the interval for his century, and the single that got him there - tapping a shortish ball from Harbhajan for a single to fine leg - encapsulated the manner of his innings.
It had been a super effort from a batsman whose presence in the England side has been criticised.
The Strauss-Collingwood partnership finally realised 214 runs, the best for the fourth wicket by any team in Chennai and by any England team in India.
But the game entered a sterile period when England's batsman resisted the urge to attack.
The bowlers lost time in which they could have tested India's top order as Strauss and Collingwood each departed on 108, and Andrew Flintoff and Graeme Swann faced 32 balls for a combined 11 runs.
While the exhausted Strauss, who drove Harbhajan to cover, and Collingwood, lbw to a Zaheer Khan yorker, could be partially forgiven, it was hard to be as sympathetic to the batsmen below them in the order.
Neither Flintoff, who edged Ishant Sharma behind, nor Swann, who was bowled by Zaheer, were out attempting the big shots England's position demanded. And even when they were out, Kevin Pietersen still wanted more runs, although they were coming so slowly.
Steve Harmison was bowled on the stroke of tea, and after the interval Matt Prior, who hit 33 off 56 balls, speared a catch to cover.
Strauss and Collingwood both completed centuries on Sunday
Pietersen finally decided to call in the batsmen, and Sehwag took the declaration as his cue to set up an intriguing final day.
His early striking was impressive - and the crowd of 10,000 or so lapped it all up as a series of blows through the off-side off the pacemen was followed by a monstrous six in Monty Panesar's first over.
Alastair Cook put Sehwag down on 26, however, and he got another dose of luck on 65 when umpire Daryl Harper declined a decent lbw shout from Swann.
The off-spinner, bowling so much better than Harbhajan had, might also have seen Gambhir fall in his first over, when England appealed for a catch off bat and glove.
But Swann went on to take his third wicket in an impressive debut when a ball kept low out of the rough as it turned into Sehwag's pads. Harper took a few seconds to give the decision, but crucially for England he did.
Andrew Strauss starts day four in Chennai on 73 not out, aiming to help England build on their overnight total of 172-3 and 247-run lead
Strauss moves steadily towards his second century of the match and secures his 14th Test hundred with a single off Zaheer Khan
Strauss's 213-ball ton means he is the first Englishman to hit two centuries in a Test in Asia and the 10th to hit two hundreds in a Test
India show increasing frustration as Collingwood and Strauss extend their stand to 200 and England's lead to 319 at lunch
Collingwood joins Strauss in completing his century - his seventh in Tests - as England extend their advantage in Chennai
Ishant Sharma celebrates after Andrew Flintoff edges the ball to wicketkeeper Mahendra Dhoni for four as England lose momentum
Collingwood's defiant 250-ball innings finally comes to an end when Zaheer traps him lbw for 108 but there's no sign of a declaration
Graeme Swann is clean-bowled by a Zaheer inswinger and England's batsmen are struggling for runs as India slow the over-rate
Zaheer rearranges Harmison's stumps and tea is taken with England 301-8 - after a session which saw just 57 runs come off 22.5 overs
Matt Prior bats well for 33 and England finally declare 17 minutes after tea on 311-9 - setting India 387 to win
Virender Sehwag gets India off to a fantastic start - 45 runs come off the first five overs - to the delight of the home fans
Sehwag hits Panesar for a huge six and soon brings up his 50 off 32 balls - the ninth fastest in Test history
England skipper Kevin Pietersen consoles Panesar after the spinner suffers at the hands of Sehwag's blistering attack
Gautam Gambhir joins the onslaught as India bring up the 100 off 108 balls and England are unable to stop the flow of runs
Swann ends Sehwag's spectacular 68-ball innings on 83 and India finish the day on 131-1, needing a further 256 to win
news.bbc.co.uk/sport