England captain Joe Root on defeat in Oval Test: We’ve got to be more ruthless

England captain Joe Root paid tribute to India’s fast bowlers for the way they forced the ball to reverse and regularly pass through wickets on the final day to lead the visitors to a 157-run victory in the fourth test on Monday.

Indian seamers used the reverse swing to great effect on Day 5 to outplay England on a flat pitch at The Oval.

England openers Rory Burns (50) and Haseeb Hameed (63) put on 77 for no loss on Day 4 while chasing a mammoth target of 368 but the tide turned in India’s favour on Day 5 when Shardul Thakur broke through early in the first session.

England collapsed from 100 for no loss to 210-all out inside 3 sessions to lose their first Test against India at The Oval since 1971.

Root even tried to wage a lone battle during the tough chase but couldn’t save his team as Umesh Yadav (3/60), Jasprit Bumrah (2/27), Ravindra Jadeja (2/50) and Shardul Thakur (2/22) ran through the English batting lineup to help India reclaim the series lead in London.

“Frustrating not to get something from the game today, we felt we had an opportunity to win, but credit to India, they got the ball to reverse and that was the turning point.

“Could have made more of a first-innings lead, and you have to make chances count against world-class players. Got to find ways to get better but be realistic and realise that was world-class bowling,” Root said after the match.

England suffered a spectacular batting collapse after the lunch break to lose six wickets in the second session and two in the final as India went 2-1 up in the five-match series.

The match was effectively over when Shardul Thakur dismissed England captain Joe Root for 36 with an innocuous delivery which the in-form batsman dragged on to his stumps.

“It might reverse at OT, we’ll have to manage it better. Whenever you lose the game you can look at the toss, but we’ve got to be more ruthless, and make that a 200-run lead. Got to be clinical, not be comfy, make big partnerships.

“We have played good cricket and important to remember that,” Root added.

The fifth and final Test starts at Old Trafford in Manchester from Friday.