England And India Ready For Cliffhanger On Final Day In Dramatic Fifth Test

First came bad light, past rain, and pinch it nan penultimate time of this epic Test bid ended pinch nan eventual cliffhanger. England had seemingly been cruising to their target of 374, driven by sparkling hundreds of years from Harry Brook and Joe Root, only for India to onslaught backmost and time off them six wickets down, 35 runs still required, erstwhile nan players near nan field.

And truthful contempt looking for illustration a melodramatic 4th time would bring finality to nan contest, this 5th Test decider now heads into nan 5th time pinch everything still connected nan line.

England will resume successful nan greeting hoping that Jamie Smith, past of nan apical 7 batters, tin guideline them to a 3-1 bid triumph and Chris Woakes, dislocated near limb successful a sling, is not required to bat.

India tin still level nan bid astatine 2-2 – a stock of nan Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy – and, having somewhat floundered during a 195-run fifth-wicket guidelines betwixt Brook and Root, they had possibly origin to consciousness astir aggrieved erstwhile proceedings were paused astatine 5.30pm. The unit was very overmuch pinch them astatine this shape and England were scrapping for their lives.

Harry Brook (left) and Joe Root shared a 195-run fifth-wicket guidelines astatine nan Kia Oval. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

While Brook’s singular 10th Test period had been terminated connected 111 from 98 balls – bat flying retired of his manus erstwhile top-edging Akash Deep into nan ringing – and Jacob Bethell mislaid his mediate stump for 5 trying to break free from nan shackles, it was nan removal of Root for 105 to a feathered separator disconnected Prasidh Krishna that sent England’s supporters into a tailspin.

The aged shot had belatedly started to move for India’s quicks and, from 337 for six, Smith and Jamie Overton played retired 20 balls of paralysis successful which it felt for illustration each 1 was either beating nan bat aliases squirting disconnected nan wrong edge. The Indian supporters, restless while Brook and Root were seemingly breaking nan backmost of nan chase, were abruptly nan ones successful afloat voice.

Most galling of each was that 30 minutes aft play was abandoned astatine 6pm, nan Oval was drenched successful sunshine and nan past remaining spectators were shouting words for illustration “disgrace”. If thing else, nan overnight region handed Smith and nan tail clip to reset, moreover if this besides intends facing a refreshed Indian onslaught first point pinch nan 2nd caller shot conscionable 3.4 overs away.