In the postponed fifth Test at Edgbaston, England cruised to a record-breaking 378-run victory over India.
The rescheduled fifth and final Test match between England and India ended in a seven-wicket victory for England, the highest successful chase in a Test match’s fourth innings ever. Hosts Edgbaston, Birmingham staged a remarkable comeback to beat India, who had a first-innings lead of 132. Unbeaten centuries from Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow helped England to an easy 378-run victory in the last innings of the match.
In just 76.4 overs, the home team was able to declare. In the final inning, they averaged nearly five runs per over. Bairstow scored 114 not out, while Root remained undefeated on 142. In just 21.4 overs, Alex Lees (56) and Zak Crawley (46) put up 107 runs for the first wicket and were the only batsmen to score centuries. Root and Bairstow, on the other hand, shared an unbroken 269-run fourth-wicket stand of 52.3 overs.
Although former India cricketer Ajit Agarkar admitted that little could be done when the likes of Bairstow and Root get going, the team should have made things difficult for England. He went on to say that the Indian squad will be shocked by such a defeat.
In the post-match program on SonyLIV, Ajit Agarkar observed, “It’s not a disgrace when there are two guys who have confidence and are quality players… (but) it’s the manner in which India has lost this game.”
“Because of this, they had to push them (England) to their limits… The Indian squad must have been taken completely by surprise by England’s ease with which they obtained the trophy “she said.
Additionally, England’s 378-run chase against India is the highest successful chase by any side in a Test match against India.
As a result of their historic victory on Sunday, England and India have now tied the five-match series at 2-2.
