Harry Brook century before dramatic dismissal takes England in sight of win
A demoralised India were on the verge of throwing in the towel when Brook swung so hard looking for a third successive boundary off Akash Deep that he sent his bat spiralling in the air as a simple catch looped to mid-off.
Akash Deep breaks the partnership at last!
What a knock from Harry Brook, 111 from 98 deliveries 👏 pic.twitter.com/wuqJUYDKWv
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 3, 2025
He departed for 111 but Root was looking imperious as he reached the break on 98 not out alongside Jacob Bethell. Another 57 runs will seal a 3-1 home win and ensure the newly-minted Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy heads to Lord's.
Mohammed Siraj botched a chance to change the course of the match when Brook skied a catch to fine-leg with just 19 to his name but, although he held the chance, the seamer stepped on the boundary then carried the ball over for six.
England fans celebrated deliriously as a stunned Siraj realised what he had done, while Brook never looked back. He completed his 10th Test hundred in just 91 balls, his first in a fourth-innings pursuit, and hit the lion's share in a stand of 195.
Should the hosts get over the line it will complete a hat-trick of stunning pursuits against India in the past three years, following their record 378 for three at Edgbaston in 2022 and 373 for five at Headingley in the first match of this series.
They would also set a massive new record chase at Surrey's home, smashing the previous best of 263 set in 1902.
Mohammed Siraj reacts after catching Harry Brook but carrying the ball over the boundary for six (Ben Whitley/PA)
Siraj had snatched the momentum with the last act on Saturday evening, bowling Zak Crawley with a clinical yorker, India made a promising start by removing Ben Duckett (54) and Ollie Pope (27) in the morning session.
Duckett converted his overnight 34 into a fourth half-century of the series but played and missed repeatedly as he struggled against Siraj, finally nicking Prasidh Krishna to second slip.
Krishna, gamely filling the considerable boots of the rested Jasprit Bumrah, came desperately close to pinning Root lbw for just three but saw his huge appeal rejected. Ball-tracking showed it was clipping leg stump, but it would not have been enough to overturn the decision.
After an hour's play England had scraped together 37 runs, briefly accelerating as Pope hit three fours in an over off Krishna including one classy on-drive.
But that was the end of a cameo rather than the start of something more substantial, Siraj charging in and nailing him in front of the stumps.
At 106 for three, India had taken control but the arrival of Brook brought a screeching gear shift. He went for all-out aggression, at one stage lashing 27 runs in eight balls.
Harry Brook went out in counter-attacking fashion (Ben Whitley/PA)
That included a crunch through midwicket and a lavish six over cover off Deep before his near miss at fine-leg, risking his wicket but picking up six more for his efforts. Siraj looked mortified, with the English fans revelling in his anguish. Krishna, meanwhile, had to quietly shelve the celebrations he had already started to perform.
The wheels fell off India's wagon in the afternoon, as a combination of defensive fields, passive captaincy and tired bodies left them short of answers. Brook and Root ruthlessly milked the situation, scoring a steady stream of ones and twos and waiting for the chance to hit fours.
A ragged full toss from Ravindra Jadeja and a woeful misfield from Deep, who kicked the ball over the ropes after declining to use his hands, suggested the game was up as the required runs dropped to double figures.
Brook looked to speed up after reaching a well-deserved hundred, lashing Deep for back-to-back fours before departing as his bat flew out of his hands.
Bethell was lucky to escape a caught-and-bowled on one, Deep slipping as he turned, but Root finished the session in full control as he moved within two of his century.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
19 minutes ago
- The Independent
How ‘warrior' Mohammed Siraj set the tone to announce a new era for India
Mohammed Siraj woke up on a drizzly morning in south London realising that the time was now. India were up against it and heading towards a fifth Test defeat against England and subsequently a 3-1 series loss. A scoreline that would not reflect the fierce battle between the two sides over 25 days, with each Test meandering to a climax over its full duration. Siraj had bowled 1,088 balls by this stage. Yet as much as his physical endurance, his composure was tested, too. That misfield on day four at The Oval, stumbling and staggering into the boundary after clutching Harry Brook for, what would have been, a match-turning score of 19. A mistake that cost India 92 runs before the most dramatic of six-run victories. 'When he woke up in the morning, he believed he could do it,' former India wicket-keeper and Sky Sports pundit Dinesh Karthik confirmed. 'Then he took a screenshot of something from Google that said, 'believe'. He put it out there because he wanted to get it done.' And believe he did. England started the day needing just 35 runs in their pursuit of 374. Prasidh Krishna coughed up eight runs from the rest of his over, finished overnight after the bad light and rain scuppered a premature conclusion to this enthralling Test. Siraj then dialled up the pace and added some menacing swing, too, with Jamie Smith bamboozled immediately. A couple of near misses followed a delicate nick back to Dhruv Jurel with his third ball, sparking bedlam. Siraj wheeled away, arms outstretched, but the chaotic celebrations were temporarily cut short due to umpire Kumar Dharmasena's bizarre move to verify that the catch was clean. Of course, it was, and Siraj had duly delivered the belief India needed to hunt down another three wickets for victory and a drawn series. The rest of the match-winning spell, ending at 3-9 from just 25 balls, saw Jamie Overton trapped lbw, before Gus Atkinson finally departed, despite a gritty effort to shield the one-armed, heroic Chris Woakes from this devilish Indian pace attack. His stumps rearranged to put the exclamation mark on this iconic win. While Jasprit Bumrah remains the finest bowler in the world, with his ailing body unable to allow more than three appearances in this epic series, Siraj has underlined his importance, confirming the duo, whenever they do line up together, as one of the great fast bowling pairs in the game. Cricket, a sport riddled by the quirks of trends and numbers, shows us that India win just 41.67 percent of the games he plays, but that rises to 71.43 percent without him, according to cricket statistician Ric Finlay. While Siraj's inclusion ensures a 53.66 percent win rate and just 40.00 percent without him. Naturally, it is daft to suggest India are better off without Bumrah, but there is something about Siraj and the emotional impact that numbers cannot measure with this fiery seamer and unique character. "You don't seem to look at the bowlers as much,' Karthik remarked when highlighting how batters usually get the credit. 'Not just today, but Siraj walked in today trying to be the man. He has bowled like an absolute warrior; he's done the donkey's work too. He's hit 90mph, I couldn't be more proud of him as a bowler." It is that energy and the ability to dig deep when others wilt. Take the wicket of Atkinson to clinch the match, clattering the stumps in this most chaotic of finales. It was clocked at 143kmph, according to CricViz, his fifth-quickest ball of the series. That, after 1,111 balls in this series, shows remarkable strength. As proven with others, such as Ben Stokes, and the aforementioned Bumrah, who, despite their brilliance, have been unable to hold up to this relentless pace of five Tests and 25 sapping days of play crammed into 46 days. 'He's a captain's dream,' concluded the gleeful India skipper Shubman Gill. 'Coming in for five matches, giving absolutely everything. Every team wants a player like him, and we're very lucky to have him.' If Bumrah is India's talisman, then Siraj has elevated himself to be his partner in crime and a sensational stand-in when needed. An intimidating presence for the opposition and an able supporter of his teammates when tensions spill over in highly-charged moments, as proven during the antics at Lord's after Zak Crawley's theatrics to delay play on day three. He is also the ultimate counter-puncher, as proven by the final delivery on day three at the Oval to rearrange Crawley's stumps. If Test cricket is about momentum, then Siraj can swing it as much as the ball. 'I've always had great admiration and respect for Siraj as a competitor,' Ben Stokes conceded following the fifth Test. 'He keeps coming and coming and coming. 'You know he'll always be in a fight with you. He's an example of what it means. I have respect for how he goes about his cricket and how he takes it on.' The tourists had a mindset throughout the series that they were 'not given a chance,' according to KL Rahul, with key figures Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma absent. But the India opener insists that the fifth Test victory is 'where the change begins' and that 'it means absolutely everything.' If that is the case, then Siraj's impact might just be felt for many years to come.
The Independent
19 minutes ago
- The Independent
Everton close in on Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall as summer investment continues
Everton are progressing in their attempts to sign Chelsea midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in a £25m deal. David Moyes is making headway in his chase for a fifth summer signing, while Chelsea are willing to let Dewsbury-Hall leave after a solitary season at Stamford Bridge. The 26-year-old, who excelled for Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca as Leicester won promotion, only started two Premier League games last season following his £30m move. And Everton are seeking to strengthen their midfield following the departures of Abdoulaye Doucoure and on-loan Orel Mangala. Chelsea have spent about £250m this summer and brought in about £135m but they could recoup more money by selling Armando Broja and Lesley Ugochukwu, both to Burnley. Everton are also interested in Southampton's Tyler Dibling. Lyon's Malick Fofana is another player they have considered in a bid to bring in someone who can play on the right flank after the summer departures of loanees Jack Harrison and Jesper Lindstrom. Moyes, who had said he wanted five or six more signings this summer, expressed confidence after the 2-2 draw with Manchester United in Atlanta that Everton were getting closer to new signings. The Scot has already signed striker Thierno Barry, midfielder Charly Alcaraz, defender Adam Aznou and goalkeeper Mark Travers this summer and a move for Dewsbury-Hall would take his spending past £75m.
BBC News
19 minutes ago
- BBC News
'Excellent prospect' Ngumoha stars for Liverpool - but who is he?
Liverpool's second youngest ever player Rio Ngumoha shone again in pre-season to get fans wondering if he could be part of the first team this England Under-17 forward, who turns 17 later this month, scored and assisted in their Anfield return against Athletic Reds were playing the Basque side in two pre-season friendlies - at 17:00 and 20:00 was a mostly second string XI that started the first game, with Ngumoha on the left wing - and he caught the eye as he has done all scored in just the second minute as he ran onto a loose ball in his own half before racing forward and curling a fine effort in from 20 yards three minutes later he nodded a Ben Doak cross down for Darwin Nunez to convert from close fans were singing his name as Curtis Jones urged them to show their he caused the La Liga side all kinds of problems with his dribbling and trickery in the 4-1 and Harvey Elliott scored the other 16-year-old left to a standing ovation midway through the second half."He is such an excellent prospect," said ex-Reds defender Gary Gillespie on LFC TV."The difficult is managing expectations but it's hard to put a lid on it."Ngumoha's performance came on the back of an assist against AC Milan and goal against Yokohama F. Marinos in Asian looks a fine talent, if raw, and will be hoping more first-team competitive games are on the January, Ngumoha became the youngest player to start a match, and the second youngest to play, for Liverpool - aged 16 years and 135 days old - in the 4-0 friendly win over Accrington in the FA that was his only first-team appearance and he never made the bench for a Premier League could well change this season, especially with so many changes in the Liverpool front sad death of centre forward Diogo Jota in a car crash has been the main focus of Liverpool's pre-season. There were tributes to him before and during the game at Luis Diaz was sold to Bayern Munich and Nunez is a target for Saudi Pro League exit for Nunez would mean the Reds' only really strong frontline options would be Mohamed Salah, new signing Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo - giving a chance for somebody like Ngumoha to break is unless they managed to sign Newcastle striker Alexander Isak. An initial bid of £110m has been rejected."I'm not trying to rush because I'm still only young," said Ngumoha last week."But at the same time, I just want to show the manager what I can do and not get too complacent. I just want to do bigger and better things for me and the club."Ngumoha is not actually a Liverpool academy product, having only joined Liverpool from Chelsea's youth set-up last the time Blues legend John Terry wrote "this boy is and will be a top player".He's not looking wrong.
