England vs India 5th Test live: score, updates from day 4
The ball slips out of Jadeja's hand and Root hits it one-handed for four. Ninety-five to win now.
Root and Brook very happy to milk the spinners, no need to do anything overly aggressive. This is a real test of Gill's captaincy — what does he do? He probably needs to bring his fielders up or these two will just milk away with only 109 needed to win now.
The crowd are on their feet again, this time for the 150 partnership from just 164 balls. India look demoralised.
Accuweather, which is the cricket journalist's weather app of choice (and no I am not on commission) says that rain will arrive in 20 minutes but won't last long. It is very gloomy here, but no one in the crowd is putting their pullovers or anoraks on.
Ravindra Jadeja has come on to bowl and Root immediately takes him on for an aggressive boundary. Root is such a good player of spin and this is a high-risk strategy for India, but the seamers are tired so they've not got loads of choice.
That's drinks. The partnership is now worth 133 and England are going along at 4½ an over; they need just another 135 runs. India are looking flat and out of ideas in the field.
Fifty for Joe Root from 81 balls. That's his 67th Test fifty in 158 matches.
India have asked to have the ball changed but it's gone through the gauge so we're carrying on with this one.
Twelve runs off the 48th over bowled by Deep and England now need just over 150 to win.
It's got very, very gloomy at The Oval but it's dry. The boffins at CricViz are telling us that there has been less swing today than the previous three days.
That's the 100 partnership from 108 balls. The atmosphere at The Oval is raucous and will get louder and louder with every run.
That's 200 up for England and they get a standing ovation for it. No one has stayed on the concourse after lunch, they all want to be in their seats for this.
If England manage this, it will be a much more significant run chase than the ones at Headingley earlier this series or against India at Edgbaston in 2022. Both of those victories came on considerably flatter pitches and in much better batting conditions.
Washington Sundar is coming into the attack from the Vauxhall End; he has been such a good asset to India this series with both bat and ball — a very handy replacement for the retired Ashwin.
The pitch has done nothing for the spinners all match but Sundar gets a bit of drift.
By the way… England have moved to 8/11 odds-on favourites to win the match on some of the betting markets.
England are half way to their total and Finchy, the trumpeter, leads the crowd in a rendition of Livin' on a prayer. Whoaaaa we're halfway there etc.
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Harry Brook's fifty is a rapid one, coming off just 39 balls. It's his 14th Test fifty in 30 matches.
There's a lovely contrast between the way these two are playing. Root is being Root and Brook is being Brook — 'you do you' is England's mantra.
The runs required for England is now below 200 with Harry Brook starting the afternoon session where he left off. Eleven scored off the first over after lunch.
Everyone is fed and watered, The Oval DJ has stopped playing Oasis songs, and it will be Harry Brook who takes strike to Prasidh. This is a longer session with tea scheduled for 3.55pm.
If England carry on at four an over they'll have this won with several overs to spare today; there are 73 overs left in the day.
That is lunch and both sides will be OK with how the morning session went. England have added 114 runs and India have taken two wickets.
India have bowled very well for the most part, hitting the perfect lengths to get the ball moving and England need another 210 to win.
Akash Deep has the ball drilled straight back into his shin by Brook. He's in some pain but carrying on. Looked like it hurt a lot though.
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Brook has decided that he's playing in one-day mode. It's high-risk stuff, although he's just played a lovely back-foot drive that was very classical in nature. I think Brook is my favourite England player to watch; you never quite know what you're going to get, but it's usually great fun.
Brook has taken Prasidh for 16 runs off that over. England have scored over 100 runs so far in the session.
Oh no — the India fans go mad because they think Brook has been caught by Siraj on the boundary, but the India bowler at fine leg steps over the rope and it's gone for six.
Huge slice of luck for Brook.
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The world No1 and No3 ranked batsmen in the world at the crease and Brook has just taken Deep for a four and six in consecutive balls. You can't take your eyes off this.
Another glorious drive by Root through the covers for four and that brings the runs required below 250. There's a long, long way to go still. England are going along at 3.8 an over.
When England chased down 378 against India at Edgbaston in 2022 they were 107 for three before Root and Bairstow put on an amazing partnership to win the game. Could we see something similar from Root and Brook today?
And now Pope is given out leg-before. He's been completely undone by a full-length ball that nipped back into him. He's reviewed, but it's a very good scrambled-seam ball by Siraj.
AND IT IS OUT — it was a review more in hope than anything else; the ball kept low and it is hitting. Pope goes for 27 off 34 balls.
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Pope hits back-to-back boundaries off Krishna to take England past 100. There were 14 runs from that Prasidh over, all hit by Pope, much to the delight of the Surrey faithful in the ground. The sun has come out and the floodlights are off.
Snooker player Jimmy White is here in the committee room with his grandson Ralphie Albert, who plays in Surrey's academy and for England under-19s.
The wicket of Duckett sends England's odds to win from 6/5 to 15/8. The floodlights are on and it's very gloomy. There is some rain coming from the west, but it won't hit until after 3.00pm, if it hits at all.
Prasidh Krishna strikes in his first over as Duckett plays a shot outside off and it gets the edge. It was on fifth-stump line and went straight to KL Rahul at first slip.
Big, big pressure on Joe Root now who is the most likely to navigate these tricky conditions and post a big score.
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Fifty for Ben Duckett. He's been pretty consistent throughout the series and that is his 16th Test fifty. The England opener in a serious battle with Siraj and it's great fun to watch.
Duckett is England's leading runscorer for the series with 462 at an average of 57.75, but Joe Root is not far behind with 432 at an average of 72.
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At the risk of a massive jinx, Pope looks a lot less skittish at the start of his innings here than he has on a lot of previous occasions. This is a less good over from Siraj, with the ball straying a bit down leg.
It feels like there is a wicket coming; Duckett is living dangerously. He's been beaten a couple of times and Mohammed Siraj is giving him an absolute working over.
Ollie Pope's batting average in the fourth innings of Tests is just 16.15; he has only passed 25 once. This is a huge day for the stand-in England captain.
There's a strong breeze going across the ground, there is quite a lot of cloud overhead and there's still a bit of life in this pitch so this will be very difficult for England. Akash Deep is bowling to Ben Duckett; the India seamer has claimed his wicket three times already in this series.
Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope are on their way out to the middle followed by the India team who have had a long team huddle.
We have another extended day today — 98 overs and we can play until 7.00pm.
It will be another full house here today and actually, day five is also sold out in case this trickles into tomorrow. If it doesn't, anyone with day five tickets will get a full refund. This series feels like it deserves a thrilling ending; it's been so absorbing and dramatic.
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CricViz's PitchViz data shows the surface has been getting progressively easier to bat on throughout this Test at The Oval.
With clear skies overhead and the pitch seemingly flattening out, England might fancy their chances of chasing down 324 more runs today.
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A very good morning from The Oval for what could be the last day of the Test summer. The weather is lovely at the moment; it's warm and sunny but the forecast says there might be some showers this afternoon.
India are of course the favourites and need to take eight wickets, although possibly nine because Chris Woakes will, in the scenario the England only need a small number of runs to win, go out to the middle with a bat in his hand and just try and stay at the non-strikers end.
In a series that has had just about everything it feels like that might be the perfect ending, but that's a long way off. England need another 324 to win.
Join me throughout the day for updates on and off the pitch.
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England arrived on the final day of a classic Test summer needing 35 runs to complete a remarkable chase of 374 but were blown away on a morning of unbearable tension and true sporting drama. They lost four for 28 as Jamie Smith, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson succumbed to searing pressure at the Oval. Woakes, who is expected to be out for several months with the injury he sustained in the field on Friday, answered his country's call by coming out at number 11 to try and finish the job. Holding the bat in hand, with his left arm bundled up in a sling under his sweater, he joined the fray with 17 runs still needed and was grimacing in pain throughout his brief stay. In the end he did not face a ball as Mohammed Siraj clean bowled Atkinson to secure a sensational result and a 2-2 series draw. The drama unfolded across 57 unforgettable minutes that tested the courage, character and cricketing will of both sides to the limit. 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India win by 6 runs 💔 The Anderson Tendulkar trophy is shared 🤝 A simply incredible finale to an epic series 👏 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 4, 2025 Before bad light and rain halted play on Sunday, England's scoring had ground to a complete halt with the ball zipping around merrily and beating the bat at will. The rollercoaster continued to throw up surprises on Monday as Overton hit the first two balls to the boundary. Prasidh Krishna's first ball was short but a full-blooded pull shot still came as a surprise given the precarious nature of the situation. The second was a win for the bowler, jagging into the inside edge and skimming past leg stump, but the result was the same. Having shaved the target down to 27, the battle switched to Siraj versus Smith. This time it was India who landed a blow, Smith's feet in cement as he wafted outside off to his first two balls then nicked the third. 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Mohammed Siraj does it AGAIN 😱 India are two wickets away from victory, England still require 20 👀 — Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 4, 2025 Overton had already charged through to the non-striker's end seeking a leg bye and signalled for DRS as he ran through the crease line. Ball-tracking showed it clipping leg stump on umpire's call, ushering in another explosive reaction in the stands as the 20 remaining runs began to feel like five times as many. They eked out three more as Atkinson attempted to protect Tongue from the strike but he was soon exposed, Krishna railing a full ball through his defences to scatter the stumps. That meant only one thing: Woakes would need to answer the call. He came down the steps to a rousing reception, received a pat on the back from Rahul, and began his mission impossible. Atkinson decided playing for time was not an option and made an audacious move, swinging for the fences at Siraj and smashing him high and handsome towards long-off. 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England arrived on the final day of a classic Test summer needing 35 runs to complete a remarkable chase of 374 but were blown away on a morning of unbearable tension and true sporting drama. They lost four for 28 as Jamie Smith, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson succumbed to searing pressure at the Oval. Woakes, who is expected to be out for several months with the injury he sustained in the field on Friday, answered his country's call by coming out at number 11 to try and finish the job. Holding the bat in hand, with his left arm bundled up in a sling under his sweater, he joined the fray with 17 runs still needed and was grimacing in pain throughout his brief stay. In the end he did not face a ball as Mohammed Siraj clean bowled Atkinson to secure a sensational result and a 2-2 series draw. The drama unfolded across 57 unforgettable minutes that tested the courage, character and cricketing will of both sides to the limit. Had Woakes played his part in edging England to their target, batting left-handed and against all medical good sense, it would have gone down in the pantheon of great moments at this famous ground. As it was it a near miss. It was also a fitting conclusion to see the inaugural Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy shared between two teams who have pushed each other to the physical and psychological depths over the course of seven gripping weeks. Ben Stokes' team may not travel for this winter's Ashes as favourites but they will go having been pushed all the way in a five-match marathon that has challenged them like never before. Even so, they will reflect with regret on squandering a winning position of 301 for three on the third afternoon, with Joe Root and Harry Brook both sitting pretty on centuries. 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There was a brief delay as the umpires checked the dismissal but it was a clean nick and safe catch from Dhruv Jurel, sparking riotous celebrations among the large contingent of away fans. The tension was almost unbearable as Atkinson arrived in the middle and came within a couple of inches of a golden duck. It was a horrible welcome delivery from Siraj, who was convinced the ball was carrying to KL Rahul at second slip. In apparent slow motion, it hit the turf agonisingly in front of his outstretched hands. England's insistence of playing at everything continued, a high-risk response that brought several more fresh-air shots and near misses as well as seven runs before the next gut punch. It was Siraj again, ducking one in and pounding the front pad. An ear-splitting appeal appeared to be falling on deaf ears but umpire Kumar Dharmasena waited an age before slowing raising his finger. Mohammed Siraj does it AGAIN 😱 India are two wickets away from victory, England still require 20 👀 — Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 4, 2025 Overton had already charged through to the non-striker's end seeking a leg bye and signalled for DRS as he ran through the crease line. Ball-tracking showed it clipping leg stump on umpire's call, ushering in another explosive reaction in the stands as the 20 remaining runs began to feel like five times as many. They eked out three more as Atkinson attempted to protect Tongue from the strike but he was soon exposed, Krishna railing a full ball through his defences to scatter the stumps. That meant only one thing: Woakes would need to answer the call. He came down the steps to a rousing reception, received a pat on the back from Rahul, and began his mission impossible. Atkinson decided playing for time was not an option and made an audacious move, swinging for the fences at Siraj and smashing him high and handsome towards long-off. It carried to Akash Deep but was travelling furiously and he fumbled it for a six. The game of cat and mouse now began. Siraj tossed the last ball of the over wide in the channel, Atkinson missed but set off instantly anyway. Jurel missed an underarm run-out to win the match as Woakes scrambled through in serious pain, leaving 10 to win. Atkinson knew he had to get things done quickly, but it was Siraj's story to finish as he rattled the stumps to complete a five-for.
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