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England pulled off a sensational chase of 371 runs to defeat India by five wickets in the opening Test of the five-match series at Headingley on Tuesday, thanks to a brilliant century by opener Ben Duckett.
The home side began the final day at 21 without loss and built a solid platform through openers Duckett and Zak Crawley. The pair added 188 runs for the first wicket, putting England in a strong position to chase the massive target.
Duckett was the main aggressor, scoring a quickfire 149 off 170 balls, which included 21 fours and one six. Crawley played a more cautious knock of 65 from 126 deliveries before he was dismissed by pacer Prasidh Krishna in the 43rd over.
Krishna struck again in his next over, removing Ollie Pope for eight, giving India a small opening.
Duckett then shared a 47-run stand with Joe Root before Shardul Thakur struck twice in the same over, dismissing both Duckett and Harry Brook — the latter for a first-ball duck. England were suddenly 253 for 4, still needing 118 runs.
But Joe Root held firm and found support from captain Ben Stokes, who scored a valuable 33 off 51 balls. Their 49-run partnership steadied the chase before Ravindra Jadeja dismissed Stokes with England still needing 69 more to win.
Root remained unbeaten on 53, while wicketkeeper Jamie Smith played a crucial role, finishing on 44 not out off 55 balls. The pair stitched together an unbeaten 71-run partnership to guide England home without further trouble.
For India, Thakur and Krishna took two wickets each, while Jadeja claimed one.
This victory gives England a 1-0 lead in the series and marks their second highest successful chase in Test cricket history.
