Ashwin bags five as India cruise to innings win

India 477 (Gill 110, Rohit 103, Bashir 5-173) beat England 218 (Crawley 79, Kuldeep 5-72, Ashwin 4-51) and 195 (Root 84, Ashwin 5-77) by an innings and 64 runs

Dharamsala: A five-wicket haul on his 100th Test by Ravichandran Ashwin broke the back of England's batting line-up as India won the fifth and final Test by an innings and 64 runs at Dharamsala on Saturday.

India has won the series 4-1.

England started off the second session at 103/5, with Joe Root (34*) joined by wicketkeeper-batter Ben Foakes.

Foakes, known for playing some serious supporting roles with the bat, ended his innings at just eight runs, while attempting a massive slog sweep but was beaten by Ravichandran Ashwin's spin.

Root reached his half-century in 88 balls, with five fours. The batter found some support from Shoaib Bashir at the other end.

The duo looked all but set to take England to the 200-run mark, but Bashir was cleaned up by Ravindra Jadeja for 13. England was 189/9 and 70 runs behind a lead. India needed just a wicket to win.

Kuldeep got the final wicket of the match, getting Joe caught by Bumrah for a fighting 84 in 128 balls, with 12 fours. England was bundled out for 195 and lost the match by an inning and 64 runs.

Ashwin (5/77) was the pick of the bowlers for India. Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah took two wickets each, while Ravindra Jadeja got one.

Earlier, India resumed their innings from 473/8 on the board, leading by 255 runs with Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah unbeaten at 27* and 19*, respectively.

However, the pair was able to add just four runs to their overnight partnership before they were sent back to the pavilion at 477. With innings folded, the hosts led the visitors by 259 runs.

Meanwhile, England veteran pacer James Anderson etched his name in history on Saturday, becoming the first-ever pacer in the history of the sport to complete 700 wickets in Test cricket and, overall, only the third bowler to do so.

For the visitors, Shoaib Bashir (5/173) was the pick of the bowlers for England. Tom Hartley, and James Anderson took two wickets, while Ben Stokes got a wicket.