In addition to scoring his fifth hundred in a Test, Rishabh Pant (146), Ravindra Jadeja (104), and Jasprit Bumrah (41) also contributed to India's 416 total.
Digital Desk: In order to defeat India in the rescheduled 5th Test at Edgbaston and tie the series 2-2, England successfully chased down a record 378-run total. The historic victory for England came from a disappointing first innings performance by Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow batting.
In Test cricket, this was England's most successful run-chase. They successfully chased down 362 for 9 against Australia at Leeds in 2019 owing to a masterful performance by Ben Stokes. Stokes is now, ironically, England's Test captain.
From the beginning, the test match was exciting. England played well after winning the toss to rock India's top order. Shubman Gill and Cheteshwar Pujara, India's opening pair without Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, could only put up 27 runs for the first wicket in the first innings. As India faltered at 98 for five, Hanuma Vihari, Virat Kohli, and Shreyas Iyer were unable to make the contributions that were needed before Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja pulled off an incredible comeback.
In addition to scoring his fifth hundred in a Test, Rishabh Pant (146), Ravindra Jadeja (104), and Jasprit Bumrah (41) also contributed to India's 416 total.
The top order for England struggled as well, with Bairstow providing the sole respite with a magnificent 106 from 140 deliveries as they were dismissed for 284.
Thanks to Cheteshwar Pujara's daring half-century and Rishabh Pant's 57, India's second innings appeared more hopeful, but the other batsmen were unable to continue. India was turned over for 245 at a time when they should have scored much more because of Virat Kohli's persistent poor form and Shreyas Iyer's performance.
However, India still had 377 runs at their disposal to bowl with, and as a result, their bowlers gave up their highest total in a Test match. This performance in England will and should hurt for a very long time. It has been a warning sign for India from the beginning of the year.
In their quest for a record total, England's openers, Alex Lees and Zak Crawley, got off to an incredible start. With the new ball, the pair appeared at ease against Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami, adding 107 for the first wicket. WCrawley and Ollie Pope were dismissed by Bumrah's subsequent spell, while Lees was run out for 56 after arguing with Virat Kohli. In the space of four overs, England had unexpectedly lost three wickets, and it appeared that India was staging one of its furious comebacks.
But as things turned out, there was no real fightback.
Since the beginning of 2021, Joe Root has been in fantastic form, and Jonny Bairstow has embodied England's Bazball strategy under the new leadership of Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes. Just a few days earlier, the Root and Bairstow duo had defeated New Zealand by chasing down a large score, but this was different. The game was still open at 109 for three and there was a glimmer of reversal from Bumrah and Shami. However, Shardul Thakur and Mohammad Siraj were not impressive and often failed to bowl in their areas.
Ravindra Jadeja was instructed to bowl a relatively negative line in an absurd tactic. At a time when he ought to have been seeking wickets, the left-arm spinner tried to stop the runs by hitting the leg-stump of the right-handed hitters.
With seven wickets in hand, England finished the penultimate day needing just 119 runs. While Ben Stokes was still on the way, Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow were already comfortably set. On the final day, India was expected to stage a comeback, and R Ashwin posted an Instagram story claiming that Edgbaston was cloudy. But nothing could deter England from making history, as Joe Root went on to register his fifth century in a Test match this year, passing Steve Smith and Virat Kohli on the list of Test match hundreds.
Jonny Bairstow is the only English player to score 200 runs in a Test match since Andrew Strauss in 2008. Strauss's twin hundreds had also occurred in Chennai against India.India had gained notable success at the time by pursuing a huge target.
On the fifth day, the Indian bowling lineup had little fight left. The Indian assault lacked sting and did not offer a threat to England, excluding Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami.
India has now lost three games in a row abroad. The team management may face tests and questions over their failure to maximise the performance of their pacers. The squad should be worried about Virat Kohli's performance. He has not reached 100 points in almost three years, but more importantly, he has not contributed in any way to the team.
On the fourth afternoon, as Root and Bairstow began their long partnership that would ultimately seal England's victory, the Indian team presented a lackluster appearance, and their body language was disappointing.
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