Hollywood finish as England pull off miracle run chase

The Age

6 hours ago

In the evening light and as grey clouds circled Headingley, England pulled off another miraculous triumph with a performance that suggests Bazball has shifted into a new, mature phase.
Joe Root – of course it was Joe Root – guided them home to a five-wicket victory over India with a nerveless 53 not out after Ben Duckett's 149 made the impossible possible. This win will be all the more satisfying because India were in the ascendancy for most of the Test and England made mistakes but still won.
They stuck India in at the toss in glorious batting conditions and conceded 835 runs in the match but still made 373 to win with 13 overs to spare. It is the second-highest total they have successfully chased down in Test cricket and the 10th highest successful chase of all time.
They were confidently in charge for most of the final day by batting with great control and at an easy tempo but there were scares when they lost two in two and needed 165 with six wickets left. When Ben Stokes was out there was still another 69 to be chipped away but Jamie Smith and Root put on an ice cool 71 stand. This being Stokes's team there had to be a Hollywood finish. Smith whacked Ravindra Jadeja for six over long-on to win the Test at 6.28pm (UK time), just as the sun burst through to light up the finale.
England won by blunting the best bowler in the world, possibly of all time, with Jasprit Bumrah bowling 19 wicketless overs in the fourth innings and with a fifth-day pitch to exploit.
An enthralling Test match, only the third in history in which every innings was worth more than 350, was in the balance until an hour after tea on day five and if this is the template of what is to come, then buckle up for the rest of the summer – and the Ashes.
This will sit alongside this team's other marvels against New Zealand at Trent Bridge in 2022 when they chased 299 to give birth to Bazball; the 378 against India at Edgbaston a few weeks later; and the 254 against Australia at Leeds two years ago when they made the highest score of the match to win and set up an Ashes comeback from 2-0 down. It was the sixth time this team have defied logic and chased more than 250 to win a Test.
Those wins were generally adrenalin-fuelled, seat-of-the-pants thrill rides but this was an outside-lane cruise in a Volvo set up by an unfussy 188-run opening stand between Duckett and Zak Crawley. They soaked up the pressure when Bumrah and Jadeja were on and seized opportunities to score when presented. With a nod to the Ashes, it is a hugely encouraging sign that this team has recognised that winning can be achieved more than one way, and ugly if necessary.