England won by 60 runs
PLAYER OF THE MATCH : Moeen Ali
Batter
Bowler
6.05pm local: This Indian team has got itself in some great positions, both in South Africa and here in England, only to let things slip. It's a good thing that they're getting there in the first place, but yet another series has fallen victim to their inability of holding onto solid ground. Maybe they'll do that at The Oval, if only a little too late. Today, though, is all about Moeen Ali and England, and their 3-1 series win against the No. 1 Test team. That's all from us. I've been Sagar Chawla bringing you the coverage along with Raju Peethala, Ramakrishnan, Sriram and our scorer Siva. Goodbye!
Moeen Ali, Man of the Match: Great to be back. I have missed Test cricket a lot. Needed a break. Just to appreciate everything in general. To enjoy my cricket again. When I was watching the guys at home, I missed it. Great to come back and contribute to winning a game. Playing in England for a while now, back myself a bit more. Got more confidence from county cricket. Done a lot of hard work with Saqlain. Feel like I'm getting better as a spinner everyday. When they were about eight down, Root asked me if I fancied it (batting at three). Did enjoy the 15 balls I faced. If I do bat there again, I need to tighten up. Something I'm not thinking much about.
Joe Root, England captain: He has, not just in this game but throughout the series. For a young guy (Curran) to have such an influence is outstanding. Credit to the group, they were outstanding throughout. From being up against it on the first morning, character has been a massive strength of this team. Then the skill level to back it up has been phenomenal. For the seamers it was about hitting the surface as hard as possible and for spinners it was about being as aggressive as possible. Keep the catchers in and trust that there would be one ball that would turn the game around. Way we went about how to approach the day's play was outstanding. Bit of time away from this environment can help. Have spoken with Mo about that. Going to the IPL experiencing a different side of it. Today was probably the best I've seen him bowl in an England shirt. Such a testament to how he's gone about things. That strength and depth of the squad really excites me. When you're in the form he's in, it's a nice luxury to have (about playing him at three). We do bat deep. Has been a great strength for us this series.
Kohli (2/2): Weren't many negatives for us from this game. Need to focus on positives. Have to take heart going into the final Test. It is quite handy to have guys who can strike the ball well in those positions. Once those partnerships get going, it gets frustrating. Every team feels like that, when the lower-order gets runs. They were braver in tough situations than us. Those contributions from lower-order have been significant. Would like to congratulate Sam Curran, a nice find for England and he's doing well. Joe (Root) was saying, it might not look like it but it has been a competitive series. Agree with him, been enjoyable to play. Fun for the people to watch too. Won't throw in the towel, we will come out with same intensity at The Oval.
Kohli, India captain (1/2): I thought England did well to give us that target. They batted well in third innings. Seeing how the pitch was, how the ball was turning, they applied themselves and got to a total that was challenging. Thought we were in with a fifty-fifty chance last night. Didn't get a good start, England applied a lot of pressure. All in all it was a challenging day, we put our best foot forward but it wasn't good enough. Don't think we made too many mistakes today. Credit to them. We never thought like that (of an impending collapse). Me and Jinks did well with that partnership, but if you don't have a partnership before or after it becomes difficult. But we were always under the pump. The pressure was non-stop. We felt the passion of eleven players on the field, wanting to win the Test match for their country. Me and Jinks (Rahane) had the same passion. It was getting competitive. It was tough for England as well that phase. But they pulled it back. That's the beauty of Test cricket. I thought about my dismissal as well in the first innings, if I had carried on we would've got a larger lead. Nothing to take away from Pujara. He was outstanding in the first innings to get us a lead of 30-odd. He played so well to get us that lead.
Stats corner from Deepu Narayanan:
- Only four times before this Test, India went on to lose a Test after getting opposition down for 86 or fewer in the 1st inngs of the match.
26/6 vs Pak, Kolkata, 1999
39/6 vs Pak, Karachi, 2006
68/6 vs Pak, Bengaluru, 1987
81/6 vs Aus, Adelaide, 1992
- Second closest win by runs for England against India after the 31-run win in Edgbaston in the first Test.
- England beating India after conceding a 1st inngs lead:
13 Lord's, 1936 (Won by nine wkts)
67 Trent Bridge, 2011 (Won by 319 runs)
27 Southampton, 2018 (Won by 60 runs)
Anderson: I was praying for something to happen. Mo bowled so well. The pressure that he created was immense. Made our job easier. We were praying for half-chances, few LBWs to go our way. Great for me (when asked about the much hyped Anderson vs Kohli battle). He's (Kohli) their best player. If not, one of the best players in the world. We've put him down in the series a few times but you got to give him credit. Wasn't expecting it (that catch). If Ashwin can get a few away, nerves will start getting to us. So, need to convert those half-chances.
Broad: Fantastic. It's been a brilliant series, quite emotional too. It's been a great series so far, each day you are not really sure which way the Test match is a going to go and it's a great feeling walking off with a series win. Huge credit to both teams for the way they have played. Both teams have shown amazing character. When Ashwin was hitting like that and with just 60 odd left we were a bit down and thinking could they do it? Brilliant feeling any time you win any Test match of a series particularly against a number side in the world. Has been really intense. We have been helped by the pitches in the first three Tests. Our workloads have been manageable, but still tiring. We were very proud as a bowling unit, we have adapted really nicely. When Kohli and Rahane were going like that, we just kept saying one wicket and all we needed was that one breakthrough and we knew we could make things happen.
Ben Stokes: Came here with a bit of pressure after that performance at Trent Bridge. We could have easily crumbled but we showed great character. Pretty special day. The lead that we had was always crucial regardless of their batting line-up. Took me back a few years to score those runs (smiles). I just thought that the time I spent out there was crucial. I said to Stuart I have gone away, away, away, is it too greedy to throw one back in and he said, no it's No. 9 and it worked.
Sam Curran: I can't believe what's happening. It's a special feeling to contribute to the win and most importantly we have won the series. I am just trying to play naturally as I have done for Surrey, luckily a few have come out of the screws nicely.
The pacers from both teams have been superb, almost cancelling each other out. But another major difference area between the teams have been their lower-orders. India were right on top on Day 1 with England reeling at 86/6, but they got away through Curran, just like they had got away from 86/6 at Edgbaston. Those handy partnerships lower down the order mean so much in the context of the game today.
India knew they weren't going to be favourites today. The target was already over 230, and even after nipping out the final two wickets cheaply, history was against them. Kohli and Rahane offered hope in the face of an excruciating attack out of the rough from Moeen Ali, they waded India into a position from where they could fancy their chances. But it all came crashing down, which was always going to happen with Ali being as relentless as he was. In what was pretty much a second innings shootout, that's where the contest was won and lost. India's off-spinner Ravi Ashwin missing his mark with those rough patches, while Moeen Ali hitting it again and again and again. And again.
17:23 Local Time, 16:23 GMT, 21:53 IST: Jubilant scenes on the field and in the crowd. This England team may not be the strongest, there are a lot of problem areas to be dealt with, but they've still put the series beyond India with an unassailable 3-1 lead. Fittingly, it's Sam Curran to wrap it all up. It was always Sam Curran. Be it at Edgbaston or here, whenever England were in trouble, there he was - Super Sam Curran to bail them out. What a series this has been for him.
Sam Curran to Ashwin, out Lbw!! Zoots through low, hits Ashwin behind the ankle and up goes the finger! May have missed leg stump with the angle but India don't have any reviews to challenge it. So that's the game for England. They wrap up the series with a game to go. Ashwin lbw b Sam Curran 25(36) [4s-2 6s-1]
Sam Curran to Ashwin, THATS OUT!! Lbw!!
Sam Curran to Ashwin, no run, short of length outside off, flat-batted angrily through cover
Sam Curran to Ashwin, no run, oh almost! Sliced over point, Anderson scoops it up with an outsteched left hand to set up the rebound. But he loses sight of it as it falls behind him