England Need 35 To Win Astonishing Final Test

Fifth Rothesay Test, The Kia Oval (day 4 of five)

India 224 (Nair 57, Atkinson 5-33, Tongue 3-57) & 396 (Jaiswal 118; Tongue 5-125)

England 247 (Crawley 64; Krishna 4-62, Siraj 4-86) & 339-6 (Brook 111, Root 105)

England request 35 runs to win; India request 4 wickets

Scorecard

England request 35 much runs pinch 4 wickets successful manus to hit India successful an astonishing last Test aft a hardly believable 4th time was halted by rainfall and bad light.

In scenes of unthinkable hostility and successful a raucous ambiance astatine The Oval, England reached 339-6 successful pursuit of a record-breaking 374 erstwhile nan upwind wiped retired nan last hour's play.

Sublime hundreds of years from Harry Brook and Joe Root looked to person England coasting to their target, only for India's outstanding seamers to present a grandstand finale.

Brook, connected 111, mislaid his bat successful miscuing Akash Deep to mid-off, Jacob Bethell was bowled attempting a chaotic hack and a poking Root was caught down for 105.

Jamie Overton joined Surrey team-mate Jamie Smith connected their location crushed pinch 37 required. Chris Woakes, not seen since nan first time because of a suspected dislocated shoulder, prepared to bat.

Both Smith and Overton struggled to laic bat connected shot arsenic Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna summoned 1 last effort. The scoreboard hardly moved.

Overton had conscionable survived a reappraisal for caught down disconnected Krishna erstwhile nan umpires decided nan ray was not sufficient, past nan rainfall arrived.

It intends this epic bid will beryllium concluded connected Monday morning. Either England will triumph 3-1 aliases India will level astatine 2-2. The result is connected a knife-edge.

After 7 weeks of drama, needle and outstanding cricket, possibly it is only fitting that this memorable bid will decided connected nan past imaginable day.

Both sides mightiness consciousness that this Test should already beryllium won. That it is not is acknowledgment to 1 of nan astir unthinkable days of athletics you could ever wish to see, 1 that swung this measurement and that, past ended pinch neither broadside definitively holding an advantage.

England fans were live during Root and Brook's counter-attacking business of 195, spectators rising to their feet pinch each passing milestone. The Yorkshiremen seemingly had England connected people for their second-highest tally pursuit of each clip and nan champion by immoderate squad connected this ground.

That India roared backmost says overmuch astir their spirit, nan tireless effort of their seamers, and nan power they recovered from their awesome supporters. On much than 1 occasion, nan touring players looked to their fans, beating their thorax and kissing nan badge connected their shirts.

If anything, nan extremity of play astir apt favours England. Before nan stoppage, it looked for illustration India could return a wicket pinch each ball. Then again, a night's remainder gives nan visiting seamers nan opportunity to return caller connected Monday morning, pinch a caller shot conscionable nether 4 overs away.

There is besides nan imaginable of nan stricken Woakes coming retired to bat pinch nan Test and bid connected nan line. What a finish.

From 50-1 overnight, Ben Duckett looked a cardinal man for England, only to separator Krishna for 54. Ollie Pope came and went to time off England 106-3. India were connected course.

But Brook had nan audacity and accomplishment to punch back. Root, who survived a tight lbw reappraisal from Krishna connected three, is simply a maestro of guiding Test chases. They first halted India's momentum, past punished a weary onslaught successful conditions amended for batting than immoderate different clip successful nan match.

Brook had only 8 from 18 balls, past sparked into life pinch a pulled 4 and lofted off-side six disconnected Akash Deep. In nan adjacent complete came a important chance, pinch Brook connected 19. A apical separator disconnected Krishna, Siraj underneath it, clip opinionated still. Siraj took nan catch, past stood connected nan rope.

Brook regularly heaved done nan connected side, Root played trademark handsome drives. The crowd roseate again for Brook's 91-ball century, reached pinch an edged from spinner Washington Sundar.

A creation astatine Deep caused Brook to suffer his bat and his wicket, Root went to beverage connected 98. The players returned successful sunshine and to different roar, matched erstwhile Root went to his 39th Test hundred. In a lucifer dedicated to nan life of his mentor Graham Thorpe, Root celebrated by pulling connected 1 of Thorpe's trademark achromatic headbands, and looked to nan sky.

Bethell, short of cricket and his first location Test, was tortured for his 5 disconnected 31 balls, yet bowled trying a needless hack astatine Krishna.

Nerves abruptly seemed to impact Root, who survived different reappraisal from Krishna, earlier poking nan aforesaid bowler behind. From nowhere, nan crippled was alive.

Perhaps nan abiding representation from this heart-stopping time will beryllium nan din made by India's fans during what turned retired to beryllium nan last moments.

India near themselves a seamer short successful this Test, truthful almost each of nan bowling has had to beryllium done by Siraj, Krishna and Deep. Quite really they recovered nan will to put England nether truthful overmuch unit is unknown, but they were undoubtedly driven by nan belief of their supporters.

For truthful overmuch of time four, nan shot refused to move successful nan measurement it did crossed nan first 3 days. The transportation looked level barroom immoderate occasional debased bounce. Out of obscurity aft tea, Siraj and Krishna sewage nan aged shot talking.

Smith and Overton were connected a hiding to nothing. Every transportation could person resulted successful a wicket. The England batters either played and missed aliases were struck connected nan body. The seventh-wicket brace were together for 20 balls and added 2 runs, 1 of which was a limb bye.

The reappraisal for nan drawback down disconnected Overton was optimistic and gave umpire Kumar Dharmasena clip to get twitchy astir nan light. A dense ablution arrived and it was decided nan players would not beryllium capable to return earlier nan cut-off of 18:42 BST.

The crowd booed and dispersed. The sun was sparkling earlier nan scheduled adjacent but, by then, everyone was recovering from what they had been through.