Left arm in a sling, face riven with agony, Chris Woakes could only look on helplessly from the far end. Mohammed Siraj detonated Gus Atkinson\u2019s off-stump at 11.56am on Monday\u00ad to seal a six-run triumph for India and end one of the most intense hours of Test cricket ever witnessed.<\/p>\n
A series that seemed to have it all saved its best for last, a mini-session of unrivalled gut-twisting, tortuous drama that instantly made this fifth Test an all-time classic. \u00adNeeding 35 runs to chase down 374, four \u00adwickets in hand, England collapsed in a wall of Indian noise inside a packed Oval and the first Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy was shared with a 2-2\u00a0scoreline.<\/p>\n
It was fitting Siraj should land the final blow, India\u2019s firecracker the only fast bowler to go the distance in a series that chewed players up and spat them out over 25 gruelling days. England had been cruising a day \u00adearlier<\/a>, centuries from Harry Brook <\/a>and Joe Root their rocket fuel, only for Siraj to bend the script to his will with a stunning five-wicket haul.<\/p>\n Woakes was the only other seamer to play all five, but a \u00addislocated \u00adshoulder on day one<\/a> left him a bystander. That was until the fall of Josh Tongue\u2019s wicket, 17 still needed, and he walked down the steps to a \u00adstanding ovation. Left arm \u00adhidden under his cable-knit sleeveless sweater, bat in the other hand, and intending to play left-handed if necessary, one of England\u2019s most dependable and selfless cricketers answered his country\u2019s call.<\/p>\n But this was India\u2019s day and the lap of honour by Shubman Gill and his players afterwards felt fully deserved. From the moment Woakes had the tourists none for two in Manchester \u2013 more than 300 runs adrift and 2-1 down \u2013 they fought tooth and nail to earn a deserved share of the spoils. When asked what he had learned from his first tour as captain, the soft-spoken Gill smiled and replied: \u201cWe never give up.\u201d<\/p>\n India\u2019s Mohammed Siraj (right) appeals successfully for the wicket of England\u2019s Jamie Smith. Photograph: Tom Jenkins\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Woakes did not face a ball during his 16 minutes in the \u00admiddle, albeit simply running left him in distress every time. \u00adAtkinson protected him in 13 balls, \u00adscampering a bye,\u00a0a two, and single to keep it that\u00a0way. One full\u2011blooded heave from the Surrey man, tipped over the rope for six by Akash Deep, gave the seemingly outnumbered England fans hope.<\/p>\n When one more clean hit would have tied the scores, Siraj delivered. \u00adHaving already turned a gloomy morning in south London into a sizzling psychodrama with two early strikes, he simply could not be denied. More than 20,000 people soon walked out of the ground into the midday bustle of the capital in a state of disbelief.<\/p>\n India\u2019s Akash Deep (left) and Prasidh Krishna (right) hold the stumps and Mohammed Siraj holds the match ball after taking five wickets. Photograph: Tom Jenkins\/The Guardian<\/p>\n To think the bad light farce<\/a> on Sunday that plunged this series into its final \u00admorning was thought to have stopped India in their tracks, r\u00adesetting Jamie Smith and \u00adEngland\u2019s lower order after an ordeal. Not one bit of it.<\/p>\n While Jamie Overton carved two early fours off Prasidh Krishna, Siraj got the 76-over ball hooping, with the tentative Smith tickling his third ball of the morning behind to \u00adtrigger what became a lasting wave of \u00adEnglish\u00a0dread.<\/p>\n Atkinson was dropped by KL\u00a0Rahul at slip second ball \u2013 a tough one, \u00adfingers not getting quite underneath it \u2013 and Overton fell to Siraj via a tight\u00a0lbw.<\/p>\n Tongue had another overturned, only to be yorked for a 12\u2011ball duck by an 87mph howitzer from Krishna, who was second billing to Siraj, but something of a revelation during this finale in the absence of Jasprit\u00a0Bumrah.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers’ thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week\u2019s action<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Siraj equalled Bumrah\u2019s record for an Indian in England with 23 \u00adwickets in the series and after six weeks dominated by the bat \u2013 7,187 runs was a record in five Tests \u2013 he could \u00adeasily have been player of the series. Instead, Siraj, who hit 90mph on the final morning, had to settle for player of the match with Gill\u2019s \u00adcelestial 754\u2011run tally earning him the top prize.<\/p>\n There will doubtless be ups and downs ahead for Gill, who is \u00adlearning on the job. But after calmly \u00admar\u00adshalling his country\u2019s tightest Test win, and having lived up to the expectations of a No\u00a04 spot occupied by Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar before him, the 25-year-old has started superbly.<\/p>\n Brook was England\u2019s player of the series, which \u2013 notwith\u00adstanding that incredible 111 on the fourth day \u2013 felt like a touch of recency bias. Had England got over the line for a 3-1 win then Ben Stokes would surely have merited this<\/a> after 303 runs, 17 \u00adwickets and two awards for player of the match that ended with him \u00admissing this Test for yet more soft\u2011tissue\u00a0rehabilitation.<\/p>\n As it was, he had to \u00adsettle for another near-miss, his side \u00adunquestionably rejuvenated these past three years, but still to defeat India or Australia in a series. That they threatened a second 370\u2011plus run chase in the space of six weeks spoke volumes, but the bowling \u2013 heartening returns for Jofra Archer<\/a> and Atkinson notwithstanding \u2013 remains a work in progress.<\/p>\n