By Leonard Ratnayake, Reporting from England
The headline sets the tone for our post-mortem of England’s defeat in the fifth and final Test against India, this time at their favoured venue, the Kennington Oval, handing over the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy as a gift-wrapped retention to the visitors.
Dismissing India for 224 without the services of Ben Stokes or Jofra Archer on a seam-friendly pitch was no small feat. However, England’s inability to capitalise with the bat, managing a lead of just 23 runs, was the first sign of deeper concerns.
India came out with added intent in the second innings. England, meanwhile, sorely missed the presence of Chris Woakes, sidelined by a shoulder injury. Credit to India for taking full advantage of England’s misfortunes, something England failed to do when Jasprit Bumrah was ruled out with a niggle. That oversight may well haunt them.
A standout performer was Ravindra Jadeja, whose 53-run contribution bolstered India’s second innings total of 396. Traditionally considered a bowling all-rounder, Jadeja has often looked shaky when India’s top order falters. This time, however, he thrived, even without the usual support from KL Rahul or Shubman Gill. Instead, it was nightwatchman Akash Deep, whose gritty 66 rattled England’s depleted seam attack in Woakes’ absence. Yashasvi Jaiswal capitalised too, his 118 giving India room to breathe and dominate.
Let this be a lesson: giving India even a sliver of opportunity is akin to letting a camel into your tent, it quickly takes over.
Chasing 374 was far from impossible. England’s innings looked on track with Ben Duckett’s 54 and a fine 111 from Harry Brook. But the match turned dramatically with the dismissal of Joe Root for 105 in the 73rd over. With only Jamie Smith remaining as a recognised batter and the new ball due in seven overs, England ended Day 4 still trailing by 35, an ominous sign.
In hindsight, England’s tail was as brittle as Sri Lanka’s in red-ball cricket. India saw the opening, bowled a disciplined fifth-stump line to Smith, who took the bait, and the plan worked to perfection.
Woakes returned bravely as a runner, shoulder in a sling, but he had no partner capable of guiding England to victory. The lack of resilience from the tail was almost schoolboy-level. Heroics cannot compensate for structural weaknesses.
Looking ahead, England will struggle to finish the job in Australia this summer unless their lower order can contribute with the bat. Without it, the Ashes are almost guaranteed to remain locked in the Australian silverware cabinet.
Signing off from Old Trafford, it must be said: Test cricket came alive in this historic encounter. Both England and India proved, beyond doubt, why the format still matters.
Player of the Match: Mohammed Siraj
With match figures of 5 for 104, Siraj rightly took the honours. Also spare a thought for Prasidh Krishna, whose 4 for 125 helped lay the foundation for India’s win.
Siraj etched his name in the history books with several milestones during the series:
-
Surpassed Kapil Dev’s tally to become India’s highest wicket-taker in England.
-
Recorded the third-best bowling figures for India against England in England.
-
Achieved the best bowling figures by an Indian at the Kennington Oval.
Nice post Len but it was England’s game to win which they squandered with dropped catches and injuries to key players to moot not taking anything away from the gritty Indians but 36 runs with 4 wickets in hand an unforgivable loss despite all the Indian heroics.Michael Vaughan has emphasized this in his postscript too.