A thrilling conclusion awaits cricket fans at The Oval as the fifth and last day of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy Test series between India and England promises a thriller. England appeared to be coasting to a record 374-run target on Day 4, but Shubman Gill’s Indian team came up with a fighting comeback in the final session to keep the series alive.
Jacob Bethell and Joe Root collapsed in successive shots; the momentum changed dramatically in India’s favour. Jamie Smith and Jamie Overton were finding it tough to connect under challenging conditions, with India’s bowlers cranking up the heat. Just as the battle was getting intense, the bad light stopped play. A sudden rain shower then arrived, and while the sun came back shortly afterwards, the umpires issued the decision to shut play down for the day, eliciting outrage from fans and pundits.
Former England pace bowler Stuart Broad described the call to stop play as “lazy.” He indicated that the moment called for the game to finish under the charged Day 4 environment, particularly as the conditions had improved following the stoppage of play.
“Still 20 mins away from possible start time, everyone has their sunglasses on at the train station. Felt the supporters deserved to see a finish to that Test Match today. Felt a lazy decision to call it off at 6pm, in my opinion. I wonder who makes it?” Broad wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
According to ICC guidelines, the timing for resuming play had been 11:12 PM IST. The umpires, Ahsan Raza and Kumar Dharmasena decided to call stumps at approximately 11:00 PM IST after consultation with the ground staff. That decision, made only a few minutes before the allowed cut-off point, has raised controversy, especially since clear weather followed the brief rain break.
With England requiring 35 runs and India needing four wickets, the match is ideally poised entering the last day. The hosts have a slight advantage, thanks to the chance to employ a heavy roller before play resumed, which could effectively scotch any unpredictable bounce.
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However, India is still very much in the contest. Pacers Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna were blazing in the final minutes of Day 4, and with the second new ball just on the horizon, they’ll be looking to produce a final spurt to wrest the match from the brink of defeat.
Earlier, Joe Root and Harry Brook had turned the game England’s way with a fantastic 195-run fourth-wicket partnership. If England goes on to achieve the chase, it would be their third successful over-350 run chase against India in three years, a reflection of their fourth-innings mastery.
