India pulled off a stunning 157-run win in the fourth Test against England, only their second-ever at The Oval and first at the venue after 1971, to take an unassailable 2-1 lead in the five-match series. After 1986, this is the second time that India has won two Tests on a single tour of England. Last month, the Indian men had defeated England by 151 runs.
England had resumed the fifth and final day at 77 without loss. They closed the first session at 131/2 and were looking good to draw the Test. However, within 35 balls (between overs 61.3 and 67.2), pacer Jasprit Bumrah (2/27) and spinner Ravindra Jadeja (2/50) turned the game in India’s favour, sharing four wickets to trouble England’s line-up. Jadeja claimed opener Haseeb Hameed (63 off 193) through one that turned from the rough and clipped his off-stump. Bumrah then hit England with a double as sent back Ollie Pope (2) and Jonny Bairstow (0) in his successive overs. Jadeja thereafter picked Moeen Ali. In a blink of an eye, England went from 141/2 to 147/6. A 35-run partnership between Joe Root (36) and Chris Woakes (18) kept England’s hopes alive. However, Shardul Thakur came into action and claimed Root’s wicket on a swinger. Woakes also followed Root after being caught at mid-wicket off Umesh Yadav (3/60). India had picked six wickets in the session between lunch and tea. The victory was a remarkable turnaround for India as they had been bowled out for 191 in the first innings. However, managed to restrict England’s first innings lead to just 99 runs on a placid wicket.
Thakur was the silent performer who made the difference as he hit 50s in both innings and picked three crucial wickets. The first innings half-century took India to 191 and the second innings fifty helped him stitch a 100-run partnership for the seventh wicket with Rishabh Pant and took the lead beyond 300. Rohit Sharma scored his maiden overseas Test century in the second innings. Cheteshwar Pujara and skipper Virat Kohli also came in with a half-century each. Umesh Yadav, making a comeback, took six wickets while Bumrah took four wickets in the match.
“As soon as the ball started reversing, Bumrah said give me the ball. He bowled that spell and swung the game in our favour with those two huge wickets,” Virat Kohli, after India’s historic win
“This is among the top three bowling performances I have witnessed as India captain,” said Kohli during the presentation ceremony. He further added, “It’s quite relative what you call flat. The conditions were hot and we knew were in with an opportunity when Jadeja was bowling in the rough. The bowlers were good with the reverse swing today. We believed we could get all 10 wickets, we had the belief.”
“As soon as the ball started reversing, Bumrah said give me the ball. He bowled that spell and swung the game in our favour with those two huge wickets,” he added. On being pointed out on keeping R Ashwin on the bench, Kohli said: “We never go towards analysis, statistics and numbers. We know what we need to focus on and we take a collective decision as a group. Whatever the noise on the outset, it doesn’t bother us.” England skipper Joe Root too said that it was Bumrah’s spell that changed the game. “Credit to India, they got the ball to reverse. I thought Bumrah’s spell was the real turning point of the game,” said Root.
Brief scores:
India: 191 and 466 vs England: 290 and 210 all out in 92.2 overs (Rory Burns 50, Haseeb Hameed 63, Joe Root 36, Jasprit Bumrah 2/27, R Jadeja 2/50, Umesh Yadav 3/60, Shardul Thakur 2/22)
