England in total control at The Oval
England looked well on their way to a series win, despite it only being day one of the fifth Test, as they reached stumps at The Oval on 62 without loss, trailing India by just 86 runs.
England looked well on their way to a series win, despite it only being day one of the fifth Test, as they reached stumps at The Oval on 62 without loss, trailing India by just 86 runs.
The home pace attack had destroyed the visiting line up earlier in the day, and only MS Dhoni's 82 gave them any semblance of respectability, after they were on 43 for five at lunch and their top order bombed.
England won the toss, with Alastair Cook taking the cloud cover into account after play was delayed by half an hour. Cook decided to give his bowlers a chance to utilise the swing conditions, and they took full advantage.
They ripped through the top order before lunch, with James Anderson starting the rot in the first over. Gautam Gambhir tried to leave a pearler first ball, but the swing followed the bat and got a bottom edge, which Jos Buttler claimed.
Stuart Broad then got into the act, bowling Cheteshwar Pujara for four. Chris Jordan then followed that up with two wicket maidens in a row, removing Virat Kohli for six and Ajinkya Rahane for a duck.
Chris Woakes got rewarded for some impressive yet fruitless bowling in the series, adding Murali Vijay to the pile. The opener had battled to 18 off 64 balls, but was unable to counteract the swing, caught at fourth slip by a helmeted Joe Root.
As such, Dhoni and Stuart Binny, back in the side for Ravi Jadeja, navigated to six and four at lunch respectively. They had made it to just 43 for five in 25 overs.
The afternoon saw Dhoni's lone resistance continue as they lost four more wickets. Binny was unable to last much longer after the lunch break, adding just a single to his score before succumbing to Anderson.
Woakes and Jordan then added a wicket each to their records, laughing in the face of the critics who said they were the weak links before the game began. Woakes was particularly impressive, getting swing and seam movement.
Dhoni's half century was a subdued affair for him, reaching the milestone off 107 balls, his 12th such score against England. At tea, Ishant Sharma was batting with his skipper, the last man standing, surviving a dropped catch by Ian Bell.
The tail wagged again for India as the pair put on 58 for the final wicket, at more than three and a half to the over. Still, it was hardly a shock when Dhoni, trying to keep the pace going, holed out to Woakes in the deep off Broad's bowling.
England then took their time in the evening, not rushing anything as they made their 62 off 19 overs. Cook and Sam Robson looked very comfortable, with the younger opener seemingly pleased to get some runs on the board after a lean series. He was on 33 and Cook on 24 at the close.
England: Alastair Cook, Sam Robson, Gary Ballance, Ian Bell, Joe Root, Moeen Ali, Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Chris Jordan, James Anderson
India: Murali Vijay, Gautam Gambhir, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni, Stuart Binny, Ravi Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Varun Aaron, Ishant Sharma
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