Jaiswal ton and lower-order resistance sets up riveting series finale

A sixth Test hundred from Yashasvi Jaiswal and contrasting fifties from Akash Deep, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar helped India set a formidable target of 374 for England in the series finale at The Oval.

The hosts have chased down a 370-plus target against India once already this series, but this time the openers began with restraint. Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley brought up the team fifty in 13 overs, a significant slowdown from the seven they took in the first innings, and were on course to see it through to Stumps until Mohammed Siraj struck late, sneaking in a full, fast yorker with the field set for the bouncer and breaching Crawley's defences.

That India were in a position to set such a target was down to the foundations laid by their overnight batters. Jaiswal converted his fifty into a measured hundred, his second of the series and fourth against England, while Akash, the nightwatch, frustrated England and raised three successive personal landmarks: his highest Test score, maiden international fifty (off 70 balls) and his best-ever first-class score. He also became the first Indian nightwatch to reach a half-century since Amit Mishra in 2011 at the same venue, against the same opponent.

Akash threw his hands freely at anything loose, unsettling both Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue, and went on to add 107 runs for the third wicket with Jaiswal. The stand was eventually broken by Jamie Overton, who drew a leading edge that carried to point, but by then India were firmly in control. Their 100 came up in just 23 overs as India added 114 runs in the morning session.

England struck back in that second session, taking three crucial wickets to claw some ground. The fightback began when Gus Atkinson dismissed Shubman Gill with the first ball of the session. Gill, who had looked composed, fell to an in-seaming, in-swinging delivery that trapped him in front, capping his series returns 20 runs short of Sunil Gavaskar's long-standing record of 774 runs in a Test series for India.

Karun Nair's short stay at the crease was jittery. He prodded at deliveries outside off, ducked into a few awkward bouncers and eventually gloved a rising ball from Atkinson to the keeper.

Amidst the wickets, Jaiswal brought up his century with a nudge behind square, a fitting shot considering 82 of his first 100 runs came behind square, the most by any batter at the point of reaching a century in a sample of 1526 Test hundreds in the available database.

England delivered only nine overs of spin in the 88 they had to bowl and pushed their pacers into bowling multiple spells, a move that was eventually rewarded. Jaiswal, trying to upper cut once more, picked out third man and fell for 118, handing Tongue a much deserved wicket.

Jadeja, who had been dismissed only once in second innings across the series, survived an LBW call via DRS after being hit by a Tongue yorker; the review showed the impact was just outside off. He went on to complete yet another fifty before slashing a wide ball to Harry Brook in the slips, ending his second-innings average for the series at 315, second only to Gavaskar's legendary 468 in 1971.

Dhruv Jurel added a fluent 34 off 46 before being undone by a delivery from Overton that pitched in line and straightened just enough to trap him LBW. But Washington Sundar ensured India kept piling on the runs. Washington took the short balls on, hooking and pulling into the stands at deep square. He raced to a 39-ball fifty, driving the full balls and riding the bounce with ease until he miscued one to mid-wicket to give Tongue his fifth wicket, and a second five-wicket haul in Test cricket.

England's fielding woes continued throughout. Crawley dropped Akash early in the morning and later shelled another at slip off Karun, taking their total drops for the innings to six.

With the pitch still offering some help and with scoreboard pressure mounting, India have put themselves in a position from where they can push for a famous series-leveling win on Day 4. That is if England don't Bazball their way to something improbable.

Brief Scores: India 224 & 396 (Yashasvi Jaiswal 118, Akash Deep 66, Washington Sundar 53, Ravindra Jadeja 53; Josh Tongue 5-125) lead England 247 & 50/1 (Ben Duckett 34*; Mohd. Siraj 1-11) by 323 runs