Under Shubman Gill's captaincy, the Indian team won the fifth Test match by 6 runs, drawing the series against England 2-2. This match was significant not only from a scoreline perspective, but it was also India's first series in the new cycle of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27.
WTC Points Table: India, by winning the historic Oval Test against England in a thrilling fashion by 6 runs, not only leveled the five-match Test series 2-2 but also strengthened its position in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 cycle. This was India's first Test series of the session under Shubman Gill's captaincy, and the team exceeded expectations.
India Gains Big in WTC Points Table
Before the Oval Test, India was in fourth place in the WTC table, but after this win, it has jumped to third place. Currently, India has 28 points from five matches:
- 2 wins
- 2 losses
- 1 draw
with a Points Percentage (PCT) of 46.67.
Top 3 Teams in WTC 2025-27
- Australia - 36 points (PCT - 100.00)
- Sri Lanka - 18 points (PCT - 75.00)
- India - 28 points (PCT - 46.67)
- England - 26 points (PCT - 43.33)
India's Confident Performance Under Gill's Leadership
This was the first time Shubman Gill was handed the captaincy of India in the red-ball format. Most cricket analysts considered India to be weak on this tour, but under Gill's leadership, a young Indian team exceeded expectations and finished the series on equal footing. India scored only 224 runs in the first innings, while England responded with 247 runs, taking a lead of 23 runs. After this, India set a massive target of 374 runs for England by scoring 396 runs in the second innings.
In England's second innings, Harry Brook (111 runs) and Joe Root (105 runs) brought India to the brink of defeat, but the Indian bowlers performed brilliantly on the final day.
Siraj and Prasidh Krishna Become Heroes
On the fifth day, England needed 35 runs to win, and they had four wickets remaining. From here, Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna led the Indian team to a historic victory:
- Siraj: 5 wickets in the second innings, 9 wickets in the match overall
- Prasidh Krishna: 4 wickets in the second innings, 8 wickets overall
When Siraj clean bowled Atkinson with a Yorker, a wave of joy ran through the Indian players and spectators. This was India's closest win in Test history — by just 6 runs. Previously, this record was in the name of a 13-run win against Australia in 2004.
