England beat India to win the series: All you need to know from day four at The Ageas Bowl
Sunday 2 September 2018 18:23, UK
A wrap of all the action from day four at The Ageas Bowl, where England secured a series victory over India with a 60-run win in the fourth Test...
SCORECARD | AS IT HAPPENED | HIGHLIGHTS
Full report
England completed a third straight home Test series win over India as Moeen Ali bowled the hosts to a 60-run victory, writes David Ruse at The Ageas Bowl.
India, set 245 to win after polishing off the England innings for 271 less than five overs into day four, slipped to 22-3 before being resuscitated by a 101-run fourth-wicket stand from Virat Kohli (58) and Ajinkya Rahane (51).
However, Kohli gloved Ali (4-71) to Alastair Cook at short leg shortly before tea, and India were subsequently rolled for 184 as England claimed an unassailable 3-1 lead in the series ahead of the final fixture at The Oval.
Moment of the day
The 101-run partnership between Kohli and Rahane took India to 123-3, putting them at a 53 per cent chance of winning according to WinViz.
However, Ali provided the breakthrough for England, coaxing Kohli forward where he gloved the ball onto his body and into the grateful hands of Cook.
Kohli reviewed, mostly out of desperation, but it was upheld and - with their inspirational captain back in the pavilion - the remaining Indian wickets fell at regular intervals.
Stat of the day
This is how important Kohli is to his team...
Talking point
In the 17th over, with Kohli on nine, the India skipper was hit on the pad by an Ali delivery that appeared to have done enough. The England players all went up, but umpire Kumar Dharmasena was unmoved and called it not out.
Joe Root reviewed immediately, and initial replays indicated England may have had their man. However, there was a spike in UltraEdge that proved England's undoing.
It looked as though Kohli had hit his pad with the bat to cause the spike, but the third umpire stated there was enough evidence to believe the bat had hit the ball, and concluded that the original decision should stand.
Sir Ian Botham was in complete disagreement when asked about the decision in the studio during the lunch break.
"I thought he hit his pad, and I think there's one angle that we see there, where you can actually see daylight as the ball goes past," said Botham.
"I don't think anyone even considered an inside edge, the bat is smashing into the pad and moving the pad. I don't think there's any bat involved there at all."
What they said
Man-of-the-match Moeen Ali: "I have missed Test cricket a lot. I kind of needed a bit of a break as well, and it's great to come back and contribute to a winning game.
"I played so much in the last few years that I just felt it's not a bad thing to go back to county cricket and play a bit of IPL and to really enjoy my cricket again.
"When I was watching the guys at home I really missed it and I thought I really need to get back into that side."
Ben Stokes: "I'm buzzing. We came here under a bit of pressure after the way we performed at Trent Bridge but credit to everyone, especially in the third innings I thought we could easily have crumbled but we showed that we've got this fight and character.
"We got a score on the board and the lead that we had was always going to be tough, regardless of their batting line-up. It's a pretty special day."
Stuart Broad: "It's been a really entertaining series, it's been quite hard work to play in emotionally. Each day you're really not sure which way the Test is going to go so it's a great feeling walking off with a series win and huge credit to both sides for the way they've played.
"It's a brilliant feeling when you win against any side but particularly against the No 1 side in the world."
James Anderson: "You're just praying for that one to do something, Mo bowled so well and he didn't get a wicket for his first 15 overs or so. It makes our job easier at the other end when he's not going anywhere.
"There were a few half-chances, close lbws and then that nick that we got with Kohli. Then once you open up an end, we've got a real good chance."
Tweets of the day
Watch the fifth and final Test between England and India live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10am on Friday 7 September.
Comment below to get involved in the debate, but please adhere to our House Rules. If you wish to report any comment, simply click on the down arrow next to the offending comment and click 'Report'.
