James Anderson and Jack Leach bowled England to a famous 227-run victory against India on the final day of the first Test in Chennai. Anderson inspired England with 3-17 and Jack Leach took 4-76 as England inflicted just a second home defeat on their hosts in eight years.
India made a decent start in their pursuit of a world record 420, before Anderson swung the game in devastating fashion when introduced. He bowled Shubman Gill and Ajinkya Rahane in an incredible over of reverse swing and had the dangerous Rishabh Pant caught soon after.
Virat Kohli held England up in the afternoon session with 72 but he was bowled by one that scuttled low from Ben Stokes. Leach claimed the key wicket of Cheteshwar Pujara at the start of the day and saw off Ravichandran Ashwin, who put on 54 with Kohli. Jofra Archer sealed the win by having Jasprit Bumrah caught behind 35 minutes before tea.
England, heavy underdogs before the series began, take a 1-0 lead into the second match of the four-Test series, which begins on Saturday at the same ground. They have also jumped to the top of the standings in the World Test Championship but must win the series 3-1, 3-0 or 4-0 to reach this summer's final. The victory must rank as England's greatest in recent years in Test cricket.
There have been landmark successes: the Ben Stokes-inspired victory in the 2019 Ashes, a historic win in Cape Town 13 months ago and a fine comeback against Pakistan last summer. But this is India in India. Kohli's side had lost one of their last 35 home Tests, a run going back to their last series defeat on home soil - England's victory under Alastair Cook in 2012.
There were questions about the tourists' tactics on the fourth day, and Kohli delayed things for a while, but Anderson and Leach ensured those whispers were irrelevant. It was almost the perfect performance from England, who are unbeaten in 11 Tests under Joe Root's captaincy. Root has also equalled Michael Vaughan's record of 26 Tests wins as England captain, doing so in 47 Tests as opposed to Vaughan's 51.
There were stand-out performances from experienced players like Root, whose first-innings 218 set up the win, Stokes and Anderson but also contributions from their emerging young players.
Kohli batted well on the final day and looked to be finding form after a period out for the birth of his first child. Spinner Ashwin will also be boosted by nine wickets in the match. India showed during their recent series in Australia they can respond to adversity. There they were bowled out 36 in losing the first Test and recovered to take the series 2-1.
They must do so again now to maintain their run of 12 home series wins in a row.
