Ranchi: India on Monday took an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match Test series with a 5-wicket victory in 4th Test against English at Ranchi.
Chasing 192 for victory, India reached the target in the second session on day four of the contest with unbeaten 72-run stand between Shubman Gill (52 not out off 124 balls) and Dhruv Jurel (39 not out off 77) amid middle order collapse after Rohit Sharma-Yashaswi Jaiswal’s 84-run opener of which 42 runs came in the first eight overs.
Wicket-keeping batter Jurel was adjudged Player of the Match for his terrific batting performance across the two innings. He had walked in to bat in the second innings with Shoaib Bashir on a hattrick, having dismissed Ravindra Jadeja and Sarfaraz Khan off consecutive deliveries. He along with Gill, however, soaked up the pressure by scoring runs consistently.
This was Jurel’s second Test match for India.
This is also the first series defeat for England in Bazball era, an aggressive brand of cricket adopted under the leadership of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, the captain and coach duo.
SCORE SUMMARY
India 192-5 in second innings: Rohit Sharma (55), Shubman Gill (52*), Dhruv Jurel (39*), Yashasvi Jaiswal (37); Shoaib Bashir (3-79)
England 145 all out in second innings: Zak Crawley (60), Jonny Bairstow (30); Ravichandran Ashwin (5-51), Kuldeep Yadav (4-22)
India 307 all out in first innings: Dhruv Jurel (90), Yashasvi Jaiswal (73); Shoaib Bashir (5-119), Tom Hartley (3-68), James Anderson (2-48)
England 353 all out in first innings: Joe Root (122*), Ollie Robinson (58); Ravindra Jadeja (4-67), Akash Deep (3-83)
The fifth and final Test is scheduled in Dharamsala from March 7.
