- Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett gave England initiative with 188-run opening stand
- Joe Root’s 53 from 84 balls helped hosts over the road with an hour left to play
- India will probably be left to rue a missed alternative after main for a lot of the Take a look at
Ben Stokes savoured one other heroic Headingley triumph as England accomplished their second-highest run chase to beat India by 5 wickets in an exciting first Take a look at.
Opener Ben Duckett led the cost with a powerful 149, serving to the hosts knock off 371 with 14 overs remaining of an epic closing day in Leeds.
England’s outstanding pursuit follows their well-known run-chase wins on this floor towards Australia in 2019 – when Stokes impressed them to knock off 359 – and 2023.
And skipper Stokes mentioned: ‘We’ve obtained some good recollections right here in the previous couple of years and that’s one other one so as to add to it.
‘To get to day 5 and the final hour and are available house with the win is wonderful. It was an superior Take a look at to be part of. It’s a particular begin to the sequence.’
Man-of-the-match Duckett shared a gap stand of 188 with Zak Crawley, who struck 65, whereas Joe Root hit an unbeaten 53 and Jamie Smith smashed a six to win it in a knock of 44.
Ben Stokes savoured one other triumph as England accomplished their second-highest run chase
Ben Duckett led the cost with a powerful 149, serving to the hosts knock off a sizeable 371
Joe Root and Jamie Smith completed off the duty, giving England a 1-0 win within the five-Take a look at sequence
On Duckett, Stokes mentioned: ‘He was unbelievable. He is aware of how good that was. Chasing 371, you want a superb begin and his stand with Zak set us up brilliantly.
‘Ducky has been unimaginable since coming into the crew. He has proven he can rating runs everywhere in the world and in any situations he is confronted.
‘He is without doubt one of the greatest on the planet at taking part in reverse sweeps and sweeps. He’s a top quality participant.’
Duckett added: ‘I needed to do my job. Zak performed fantastically and we knew we needed to set the tone. To begin this sequence with a 1-0 win is large for us.’
Stokes insisted he by no means regretted his controversial resolution to bowl first regardless of India reaching 430 for 3 of their first innings. However he praised the character his facet confirmed to struggle again within the Take a look at, with Josh Tongue twice blowing away the vacationers’ tail.
‘This win right here just isn’t down to only the talent, however the angle of this dressing room,’ mentioned Stokes. ‘We turned up every session with an angle that we’ll blow the sport open. Tongue’s spells had been recreation altering.’
Defeat is very damaging for India given they solely plan to play star bowler Jasprit Bumrah in two additional Checks following his return from harm.
‘We gained’t change our plans,’ mentioned India coach Gautam Gambhir. ‘For us, to handle his workload is extra vital. We haven’t determined which two he’ll play, however we consider in the remainder of our bowling assault.’
