As the final day of the fifth and deciding Test at The Oval approaches, former Indian fast bowler and current commentator Varun Aaron believes India holds the upper hand. England, needing just 35 runs with four wickets remaining, ended Day 4 at 339/6 while chasing a target of 374. Despite the close equation, Aaron says the momentum has swung in India’s favour—thanks to key dismissals and the timing of the second new ball.
“𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒍𝒚,” 𝑨𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒅𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝑱𝒊𝒐𝑯𝒐𝒕𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓 ‘𝑴𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉 𝑪𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒆 𝑳𝒊𝒗𝒆’ 𝒔𝒆𝒈𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕. “𝑺𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒋 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑷𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒉 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒆𝒂. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒈𝒚 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎.”
Joe Root and Harry Brook’s 195-run stand had placed England in control, but both batters fell during a spirited post-tea burst from the Indian pacers. Brook made 111 and Root 105, but the arrival of Jacob Bethell changed the rhythm. Aaron praised Prasidh Krishna for targeting Bethell and disrupting England’s momentum.
Prasidh-Krishna Strikes Key Blow, India Holds Nerve
“𝑩𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒍’𝒔 𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒖𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆,” 𝑨𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒃𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆𝒅. “𝑯𝒆 𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒇𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒐 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒃𝒊𝒈 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒕. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒏𝒐 𝒎𝒊𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒆𝒕 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅, 𝒈𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝒂 𝒃𝒊𝒈 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈.”
India’s resurgence was aided by a brief rain delay, which Aaron believes gave the team a chance to regroup. “Even a short break helped. The players could reset, recover, and prepare for the final push,” he noted. “This team has worked too hard over the last two months. A draw is the minimum they deserve.”
Sanjay Bangar echoed Aaron’s views, highlighting the mental battle unfolding on the field. “It felt like a wicket could fall every ball,” said Bangar. “As teams close in on victory, the pressure often becomes overwhelming. That’s where India gained the psychological edge.”
Heading into Day 5, Jamie Smith remains at the crease on 2*, with Jamie Overton and a fragile tail—including the injured Chris Woakes—left to resist India’s pace attack. With Siraj (2/95) and Prasidh (3/109) ready to take the second new ball, the stage is set for a dramatic finish at The Oval.
Also Read: Fakhar Zaman Ruled Out of WI Series 2025 with Hamstring Injury
