Gambhir, groundsman and glory – tense England-India series reaches finale

Al Jazeera

30-07-2025

Who: England vs India
What: Fifth and final Test of India tour
Where: The Oval in London, United Kingdom
When: Thursday, July 31
England and India head to the Oval for the decisive fifth and final Test of a hard-fought campaign on Thursday, with both teams battling mental and physical fatigue.
A congested schedule of five Tests in less than seven weeks has proved gruelling, especially for the fast bowlers from both teams, with every match going the distance so far.
The series has taken its toll on a number of players, including crucially England captain, Ben Stokes, who has been ruled out of the match.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at a Test that has plenty bubbling over both on and off the field.
What is at stake in the final Test of India's tour of England?
Remarkably, India can still end the series all square at 2-2 after salvaging an unlikely draw in the fourth Test at Old Trafford.
The tourists kept the hosts on the field for 143 overs in their second innings, despite the draw being inevitable in the end, as Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar secured centuries.
Why has the England-India series been so tense?
Tensions spiked at the end of the fourth Test when India allowed Jadeja and Sundar to complete their centuries after England captain Ben Stokes offered to shake hands on a draw.
There was also a finger-pointing incident during the third Test at Lord's in London, when England opener Zak Crawley irked the Indians, who believed he was time-wasting at the end of the third day.
Crawley and opening partner Ben Duckett had a tricky two-over spell to navigate before stumps, but the former stood away from his crease on fourth occasions in the opening over before Jasprit Bumbrah could bowl.
The Kent batter also called for the physio, resulting in only one over being bowled before the close and India captain Shubman Gill confronting Crawley about his actions.
What happened between Gambhir and the Surrey groundsman at the Oval?
As if the series wasn't already enduring heightened emotions, India coach Gautim Gambhir was embroiled in an incident with the head groundsman at the Oval.
Video footage showed Gambhir in a confrontation with Lee Fortis, Surrey County Cricket Club's lead curator at the Oval in south London.
Fortis was understood to have been keeping a protective eye on the square during India's training session.
Gambhir, a 58-Test veteran, was seen wagging his finger as Fortis looked on, stating, 'You can't tell us what to do' and 'You don't tell any of us what to do.'
Gambhir could also be heard adding, 'You're just the groundsman, nothing beyond.'
After walking away in conversation with India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, who appeared to take on the role of mediator, Fortis told Gambhir he may be forced to lodge a complaint against him, drawing a response of, 'You can go and report to whoever you want.'
Kotak later told reporters that Fortis's objections to a cooler being wheeled onto the square kicked off the spat.
'He was sitting on the roller, he shouted and told the support staff not to take it there,' Kotak said. 'It is good to be a little possessive, and it is also good to be protective, but not that much. Gautam just said, 'Do not talk to the support staff like this.''
Kotak added, 'At the end of the day, it is a cricket pitch. It is not an antique where you can't touch.'
Gill added, 'What happened yesterday, I thought, is just absolutely unnecessary. I mean, it's not the first time that we were having a look at the wicket.'
How has Gill been rated as India captain?
Captaincy appears to be doing wonders for the career of previously inconsistent India batsman Shubman Gill.
The elegant 25-year-old scored his fourth century of an extraordinary debut series as skipper at Old Trafford.
He came in with the tourists in dire straits at 0-2 in their second innings, responding with a marathon 103 in 238 balls that laid the foundations for a great escape.
Gill has set a new record for the most runs scored by an India batsman in a series against England of 722, surpassing teammate Yashasvi Jaiswal's tally of 712 in 2023/24.
At the Oval, he could eclipse Sunil Gavaskar's all-time India series record of 774 runs, set in a four-match campaign against the West Indies in 1971.
England team news
England captain Stokes has been ruled out of the Test with a right shoulder injury.
Ollie Pope, who bats at three, will replace Stokes as skipper, the England and Wales Cricket Board said on Wednesday.
Stokes said he expects to be sidelined for up to seven weeks, which should in no way impact his participation in this winter's Ashes series in Australia. But he felt it was clearly too risky playing one more Test against India.
'It is one of those of weighing up the risk-reward, and the risk was way too high for damaging this any further than it currently is,' he said. 'I wouldn't expect to put any of my players at risk with an injury like this. Once this series is done, I was feet up anyway [so] it doesn't really make too much difference to what I've got from the end of the series up until the winter.'
England must also decide whether to risk express paceman Jofra Archer, who has bowled nearly 90 overs in two Tests after more than four years of injury-enforced exile.
The home team took just four wickets on a flat Old Trafford pitch during India's battling second innings, with seamer Brydon Carse also worked hard.
Jamie Overton has been added to an England squad that already has extra pace options in Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson.
India team news
India will be without vice-captain and prolific runscorer Rishabh Pant, who sustained a foot fracture in Manchester.
Jasprit Bumrah's back injury earlier this year prompted India to announce the fast bowler would only feature in three games during the current series.
The world's top-ranked Test bowler made his third appearance on a docile pitch in Manchester and has little time to recover after bowling a gruelling 33 overs, during which he took two wickets.
But India coach Gautam Gambhir says all of his squad's quicks are fit for the finale, including Akash Deep, who took 10 wickets in Bumrah's absence during India's 336-run win in the second Test at Edgbaston before suffering a groin injury in the next match at Lord's.
The Oval curator breaks silence!
• Lee Fortis, The Oval's chief curator, speaks out• Opens up on fiery exchange with Gautam Gambhir• What triggered the confrontation?
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