In the end, India won at the London Oval by a whisker to level the series 2-2. But the fact that it could have gone either way till the second-last ball speaks volumes of the two talented, idiosyncratic sides. With the high drama and intense emotions the Test series generated, one can safely say the romance of the longest format has been rekindled. Every one of the five Tests stretched to five days and the narrative swung both ways during all of them. Nothing is more symbolic than the way India clawed back into the last Test and won. More than anything else, the young side must take heart in the way they bounced back from the wire while showing immense poise. In his first series as captain, Shubman Gill made an indelible mark that will help him gain respect from his team. He showed temerity to hold English bowlers at bay on their own pitches, emerging as the highest run-getter in the series. Mohammed Siraj stepped out of the shadow of the mercurial Jasprit Bumrah, spearheading the attack in the senior’s absence. Akash Deep and Prasidh Krishna played the perfect foil.
Yet, long after the celebrations are over and the Indian management has gone through the notes, they should be a bit disappointed. The players gave it all on the field, but when it came to picking the playing 11, the team management seemed to lack a plan. They had three batters—Gill, K L Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja—having the series of their lifetimes. They had Bumrah for three Tests and Siraj delivering whenever needed. They had promising talent in Yashasvi Jaiswal, Washington Sundar and B Sai Sudharsan. But what Gautam Gambhir and Gill did not do is give their attack the luxury of another frontline bowler. They made conservative choices, picking an extra batter time and again. It makes one wonder whether India lost the chance to win a series in England. Smarter choice of pacers would have allowed them to manage the workload. Gill and Gambhir must take a hard look and find the best combination for India to succeed in all conditions at home or abroad. After the lows of the New Zealand and Australia series, this is a chance for the young team to begin a new chapter.