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After four series wins and three draws, England’s ‘Bazball’ approach hit a roadblock on Monday, February 26 after defeat to India in the fourth Test of a five-match rubber in Ranchi. The narrow defeat means England are no longer invincibles under the leadership of Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum joined hands nearly two years ago. India’s win on Monday saw them turn the tide on the visitors, who had won the series opener in Hyderabad. The Rohit Sharma-led side, however, had to overcome injuries and absence of several key players to hand England a first series loss under Stokes and McCullum.
When McCullum first took charge in 2022, England seemed down and out, having lost the Ashes 4-0 to Australia Down Under.
The defeat saw Joe Root step down as captain, and marking of a new era with the appointment of Stokes as skipper.
England have reap the rewards of Stokes and McCullum’s partnership, winning four of their last seven series’ before arriving on the Indian shores.
With Bazball, England won 3-0 in Pakistan and drew the Ashes against Australia, changing fortunes with their attacking philosophy.
However, in India, England’s Bazball finally found its match. India had won 16 Test series’ on the trot at home. The last team to beat them was Alastair Cook‘s England in 2012.
India are now 17-0 since Cook’s England won 2-1.
Coming back to the match, England had scored 353 all out in their first innings and led by 46 after India’s 307.
Indian spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav set up the victory after they shared nine second-innings wickets to bundle out England for 145 on day three.
Chasing 192, Shubman Gill played the anchor in his 124-ball knock as he and Jurel, who made 90 in India’s first innings, staved off a mini-crisis when Shoaib Bashir took two wickets in two balls soon after lunch.
India still needed 72 more but Gill and Dhruv Jurel rotated the strike coolly to pick off singles before raising his fifty with two successive sixes off Bashir.
Jurel hit the winning runs, punching the air and hugging his partner as the Indian dressing room rose to celebrate.
(With AFP Inputs)
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