'We were outplayed by the better team' confesses Stokes after India seal emphatic series victory in Dharamsala

India beat England by an innings and 64 runs in the final test to win the five-match series 4-1 at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium on Saturday.

Having conceded a lead of 259, England were all out for 195 in their second innings on day three of the contest with Joe Root topscoring for them with 84.

James Anderson became only the third bowler to pick up 700 Test wickets but his celebration was muted on a day that England would like to forget in a hurry

Anderson, already the third-highest wicket-taker in Test history, joined the 700-club when he dismissed India’s Kuldeep Yadav on Saturday morning at Dharamshala. The England veteran achieved the feat in his 187th Test and is the first pace bowler to reach the milestone.

He followed Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan (800 wickets in 133 tests) and Australia’s Shane Warne (708 wickets in 145 tests), both spin bowlers to have achieved the mark.

Skipper Stokes paid credit to India after the result, declaring they were “outplayed by the better team”.

“I don’t give too much away when the series is going on but now it’s over we are big enough to say we have been outplayed by the better team since winning the first Test," said Stokes

“We have got a lot of cricket coming up and taking the positives is something I am excited about. I want to drive this team forward.”

“It’s sad the 700th wicket is going to be glossed over by the fact England have batted so poorly in this session,” Alistair Cook later said on TNT Sports.

“To lose five wickets is not unforgivable, but it’s poor batting. The end-of-tour-itis I think has definitely reared its head.”

For former India batter Sunil Gavaskar described India's series win as a clinical.

“There are no excuses for the regular whining and moaning [about spinning pitches in India]. England have been beaten fair and square,” Gavaskar said on Sky Sports.

India had a winning 3-1 lead. It won the fourth Test in Ranch i by five wickets to capture the series.

England was in deep trouble and staring at a heavy defeat after being 103-5 at lunch, trailing by 156 runs.

India finished the second day at 473-8, with Yadav (30) and Jasprit Bumrah (20) at the crease. India only added four runs to its overnight score — Anderson had Yadav caught behind in the fourth over of the morning to achieve his milestone.

Then off spinner Shoaib Bashir had Bumrah stumped to finish with 5-173. It was his second five-wicket haul in four tests, and he became the first England bowler to achieve the feat before turning 21.

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma did not take the field in England’s second innings because of a stiff back. Vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah took charge, sharing the new ball with Ravichandran Ashwin.

Brief scores

India: First innings 477 all out

England: First innings 218 all out. Second innings195 all out

India win by an innings and 64 runs

Series top run-scorers

Yashasvi Jaiswal - 712

Shubman Gill - 452

Zak Crawley - 407

Rohit Sharma - 400

439 Dale Steyn 🇿🇦

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