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Day of ups and downs: Team India's dramatic comeback keeps England in check at The Oval
England's Josh Tongue dives on the ground during the second day of the fifth cricket test match between England and India at The Oval. AP
A contrasting day for both sides at The Oval. India slaughtered in the morning session, fought back passionately for the rest of the day to nudge themselves ahead in this tightly wound contest. England meanwhile watched their dream start to day two slowly curdle as the afternoon wore on.
For now this game remains firmly up in the air, , with 8 wickets remaining – and facing an England side minus their most experienced fast bowler – must be considered favourites and, while it is probably unlikely, have a reasonable chance of wrapping up a win inside three days.
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England's dominant display in the morning
It is a long way from where they found themselves at lunch. Blown apart by an efficient English bowling performance that was sorely missing on Day One, they added only 20 to their overnight score, with the last four wickets contributing just six runs.
Gus Atkinson continued to show how much England have quietly missed him this series, his fourth five-wicket haul – curiously all picked up in London – just reward for at times single-handedly bowling England into a strong position.
The rest of the morning would provide healthy evidence for those trying to prove the existence of momentum in sport, England's swashbuckling little and large opening duo putting India to the sword with speedy efficiency.
A stunning morning for England 🏴
Four quick wickets and a flurry of runs.
Get up-to-date in the lunch break with our live catch-up highlights 👇 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 1, 2025
Sensing the conditions tipped everything firmly in India's favour, they didn't back down, they doubled down, turning into the skid and steering their side thrillingly into a dream start. By lunch, the hosts were 109/1 from just 16 overs, almost halfway to India's total and with handsome batting depth to come.
It was a position of superiority they would never come close to returning to.
Siraj delivers a stellar performance
No matter your allegiance it is hard not to warm to Mohammad Siraj, and over the course of the afternoon he provided a wholehearted reminder of just what makes him so endearing.
Shorn of Jasprit Bumrah, you would expect India's bowling attack to be somewhat diminished. Not for the first time though, Siraj stepped up to produce an excellent performance and render the loss almost imperceptible.
Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jacob Bethell and Harry Brook all fell to Siraj, almost as good a quartet from this England side as you could hope for, their home side crashing from 129/2 to 247 all out. Siraj would finish with 4/86, and move to the top of the wicket-taking charts with 18 across all five Tests.
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Dropped catches haunt England
If a relentlessly efficient Indian bowling performance offered England some mitigation for their collapse with the bat, fewer excuses could be made for their performance in the field the second time around. It is surely what could have been from that they will rue the most tonight.
On the surface, things are not too dire; India's lead still not wildly out of control, two top-order wickets claimed by the close. Indeed after their scatter-gun efforts with the ball first time around, England were much improved – this time though it was their catching that helped tip the contest back in India's favour.
One drop at least was not too costly, Sai Sudharsan put down on 7 would be removed for 11 before the close, the other though would not only have swung things a little more back to their advantage, but threatens to be a crucial nail in their coffin.
Gus Atkinson traps Sai Sudharsan LBW! ☝️
🇮🇳 7️⃣0️⃣-2️⃣ pic.twitter.com/pKU0sMabE6 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 1, 2025
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Yashasvi Jaiswal has the explosive capability to take the game away from a team in the blink of an eye – in short, exactly the sort of player you don't want to reprieve in a low-scoring shootout. England it seems, did not get the memo, twice Jaiswal was dropped, on 20 by Brook and 40 by sub fielder Liam Dawson – his introduction to the series has not exactly gone as planned.
They were mistakes that it is not hyperbolic to say could cost England this game, an encapsulation of a performance that gradually shrivelled as the day wore on.
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