Michael Roberts
It was a thrilling privilege to watch the exciting Test Match at Lord’s unfold into a nail-biting finish with India winning by just 00 runs. India’s hero of the day was the unlovable Mohammed Shiraj.** But he was aided by some foolish batting from some of England’s men. Both Bethell the evening before and Jamie Smith on the 5th morning dismissed themselves with nervy, ridiculous shots.
THAT, of course, is a judgement of an armchair critic. IT is easy to slash a sportsman from the ease of a couch. … Ouch!
The ESPN report ,,,,, https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/india-in-england-2025-1445348/england-vs-india-5th-test-1448353/live-match-blog
Mohammed Siraj with the redemptive five-for! He finds the base of Gus Atkinson’s off stump with a perfect yorker, with England’s main man obliged to fling the bat in the absence of any alternative. Siraj celebrates with the Siuu celebration, but it’s handshakes and respect all round at the end of India’s closest ever victory in terms of runs!
Absolute jubilation for India, as they huddle around their matchwinner, bouncing up and down in glee and relief. What a stunning end to the series. And, fittingly, this finish comes 20 years to the day since the Edgbaston 2005 Test began… which must surely count as the previous most extraordinary to have been played in England!
The India team heads off on a lap of honour, KL Rahul tells Dinesh Karthik “this means absolutely everything. Nothing compares to lifting the World Cup, but so many doubts and questions about Test cricket.” He believes that this series, albeit it’s a draw not a win, will rank right up there among India’s greatest moments in the format, and no little wonder! What unbelievable scenes!
The target is into single figure
A baseball slam across the line first ball, and an instant call of “two!” from Atkinson… it’s mopped up in the deep, but they make it back… Woakes grimacing as he does so…
Second ball, an air shot, over the top of the stumps… needs boundaries now, as Woakes can’t do too much running…
Third ball, carbon copy, another swing up into the length ball, as Krishna’s extra bounce eludes his ambitions…
Fourth ball is a wide full toss, can’t lay bat on ball there… Gill is in conversation with his bowler every single ball. Wide outside off feels the plan … is another burgled single on the cards?
It’s going to have to be, as Atkinson can’t connect on the short ball outside off … Jurel removes one glove to aid his ability to pull off the under-arm run-out…
Atkinson, calm as you like, taps the single to mid-on! Was it a bluff from Krishna to aim at the stumps? Either way, it was what was needed for England. Six to tie and Atkinson on strike!
It’s all on Atkinson now!
No time to stand on ceremony for Atkinson… he’s got to get this launched, and he does… clean through the fingers of Akash Deep at wide long-on! It’s a formidable blow, down on one knee and blazed hard and flat… Deep was in off the rope and actually did well to get a hand on it, had he caught it, he would have gone over the rope anyway.
Another huge wipe across the line takes a top-edge, and lands safe at midwicket… but they can’t risk the two, in case Woakes is left exposed… foanother hack through the full length is inside-edged… two balls remain…
Fifth ball is a full toss! Any contact and that would have flown, but Atkinson misses, and the ball just eludes leg stump too… can he find the single?
They can! Siraj goes for the wide line, Atkinson can’t connect… Jurel gathers but Woakes is already sprinting! And the act has hurt him a lot! His arm has probably slipped in his sling… but he’s off strike, and Atkinson effectively needs 10 from six balls in Krishna’s next over!
Krishna castles Tongue, here comes Woakes!
Krishna to Atkinson … this is where England’s relative window of opportunity lies. But with the men in the deep, there’s little opportunity to turn ones into twos, let alone find the boundary. Besides, Krishna is hammering his line … until a short ball that is miscued to mid-on… no-one knew where it had gone! Atkinson was looking to square leg, and had to scamper the single in the end.
Two slips become three and a gully for Tongue, but with 17 needed, it’s the boundaries that are most precious, and they remain in lockdown. Still rain falling, but nothing too drastic as yet…
And now it’s drastic! Krishna piledrives a final-ball yorker through Tongue’s half-formed defences… Out comes Chris Woakes, with a solitary arm!
What an ovation! Scenes reminiscent of Colin Cowdrey at Lord’s in 1963… like Cowdrey, he is at the non-striker’s end… for now. But surely he’s going to have to front up at some stage!
Tongue in Siraj’s sights…
Six boundary riders for India, so a firm cut to a rare wide one for Siraj is just a single to deep point. It brings Tongue straight onto strike… As Matt Roller notes, he got his maiden first-class fifty this season, but 10 right now would be gold dust.
Siraj greets him with a looping outswinger, but that wide line that did for Smith needs to be tighter to the tailender.He duly tightens up! An unplayable outswinger curls round the edge. Tongue is on his mettle to guide his third ball into the cordon off the back foot, then is right in behind the line to defend the inswinger. One ball to survive… and he does, by the skin of his outside edge! What a competitor Mohammed Siraj is! He will leave nothing out there.
Krishna thinks he’s got No. 9 … but no!
Krishna seems to be the relative weak link this morning, and Atkinson continues to take him on… although there’s a well-placed deep third to cut off a well-placed uppercut to deep third…
But it’s only relative… Another inswinger thuds into Tongue’s front pad, and umpire Raza puts his finger up… this is surely missing leg! It is! Jeepers… Chris Woakes can sit down… but England are denied their leg bye in the process… how crucial will that be?
Siraj strikes once more!
Siraj, with the inswinger… Jamie Overton goes too! Umpire Dharmasena waited an eternity to raise the finger, and it was such a crucial moment! Overton reviews, and it is clipping leg stump, so umpire’s call stands! India are marching towards 2-2 here, and Chris Woakes has his arm-guard on his right arm, so he’ll be batting left-handed!
Surely the new ball is out of the question now… indeed, India persist with the old.
In the meantime, England have thrown the bat at everything this morning, in a bid to end it quickly. But you sense they’ve got to get in for the long haul now… Josh Tongue gets solidly behind the line to see out the over.
Krishna finds some swing too …
If it’s up, England are still going for it, but this old ball is talking and India are on the mark. Another over of umbrella-chewing tension, punctuated by a firm drive through the covers from Atkinson, wonderfully intercepted at deep cover by a diving Jadeja. Every run is vital, as the lights blink into life, and light rain starts to fall… Too Much Drama!
Just to add to the conundrums… the new ball is due in one over’s time. Do India take it? Surely not, given how this old ball is behaving. As England found in the third innings, until the lacquer comes off, the new nut sometimes does very little.
Siraj strikes, Smith is gone!
Was there ever any doubt that Mohammed Siraj would also have a say this morning? This is an incredible start to the day. Siraj nicks off the big wicket, Jamie Smith, in the midst of a sensational first over, with swing from the outset, and crucially a wide line, forcing Smith to chase his shots if he wants to end this in a hurry. He’s beaten twice, then snicks his third attempt – a palpable edge clean into Dhruv Jurel’s gloves! The umpires consult, not sure why, but he’s on his way…
And immediately Siraj is back on his mark as Gus Atkinson marches out. Another snick, this time to KL Rahul at second slip… it reaches him on the half-volley, but his fingers were definitely underneath as the ball wriggled out! A final-ball hack from Atkinson takes a leading edge out to point… 25 more needed!
Overton on the attack
Was there ever any doubt about how Jamie Overton would go about things on his home ground? He’s been picked repeatedly in T20Is for his long levers and boundary-hitting potential, and he comes good with two in two to launch the day … albeit in very different directions!
First up, a short ball from Prasidh Krishna, it doesn’t get up much, and with Lee Fortis having run the heavy roller over the pitch this morning, there’s no appreciable movement. Overton gets on top of his pull and boshes it through midwicket for a cathartic four.
Next up, Krishna aims fuller, and Overton climbs into his drive… it’s so close to leg stump as it flies off the inside edge! But it’s also away through deep fine leg… 35 to win becomes 27 in the blink of an eye!
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Best moment of the series?
It’s been a stunning contest, whichever way it goes. Full of brilliance, rancour, anguish, glory… every emotion in between. I tried to cobble together an XI of potential best moments, but then kept thinking of another one… So here’s a throwaway list to argue over as the players come out to the middle! ………………..Best moment of the series?
Shubman Gill’s 269 and 161 at Edgbaston
Jofra Archer’s comeback wicket at Lord’s
Bashir bowling Siraj with a broken hand to win Lord’s Test
Siraj yorking Crawley, final ball of the day at Oval
Stokes’ allround heroics with torn shoulder
Siraj treading on the boundary rope at Oval
Duckett’s Bazballing century at Headingley
Jadeja and Sundar batting out the Old Trafford Test
Bumrah’s inevitable five-for at Lord’s
Pant making a fifty with a broken foot
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