New Delhi: The fifth and final Test between India and England at The Oval has offered plenty of drama, with rain interruptions and momentum shifts keeping both sides guessing. While earlier matches in the series leaned heavily towards batting dominance, the action at The Oval has seen the bowlers step up in a big way.
Day 1 saw play halted after just 64 overs due to rain, disrupting India’s momentum as they looked to lay a solid foundation. On Day 2, England’s pace attack led by Gus Atkinson ran through the Indian batting lineup, dismissing them for just 224. In response, the English openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley came out firing, stitching together a rapid 92-run partnership in just 78 balls. Akash Deep finally broke the stand by removing Duckett but the hosts had already put India on the back foot in the morning session.
India, however, clawed their way back into the contest thanks to some disciplined pace bowling. Mohammed Siraj led the charge with a fiery spell, finishing with figures of 4 for 86. Prasidh Krishna matched him with 4 for 62, as the English middle order crumbled under pressure. England were bowled out for 247, taking a slender 23-run lead. In their second outing with the bat, India were steady, reaching 75 for 2 at stumps, with Yashasvi Jaiswal unbeaten on 52.
Heroics from Indian pacers has the #ENGvIND Test at The Oval perfectly poised at the end of Day 2 🏏#WTC27 📝: https://t.co/SNl4Ym0dTV pic.twitter.com/4q4HKuVCbt
— ICC (@ICC) August 1, 2025
Oval weather report
Heading into Day 3, all eyes are once again on the weather. Fortunately, the forecast is encouraging. According to Accuweather, there’s no rain expected for Tuesday. The day should remain mostly sunny with intermittent cloud cover. Temperatures are likely to hover around 22°C while humidity is expected to stay near 50% ideal conditions for a full day’s play.
With no weather disruptions in sight, India will be aiming to accelerate and post a strong target while England will look to strike early.