The series featured high-class batting – both Harry Brook and Joe Root struck centuries for England in the second innings at the Oval, and India captain Shubman Gill scored four centuries in his first series as captain. There was also sledging and spite, as England’s Bazballers signalled they were prepared to be abrasive as well as daring.

“You expect passion. you expect confrontation,” said England coach Brendon McCullum.

The stands were full at the Oval on the fifth morning of the fifth Test for what amounted to an hour of cricket – but an hour worthy of entering into any short film festival – after England resumed needing 35 to win with four wickets in hand.

Vitally for India, the overcast skies meant that the Dukes ball was still hooping around as it had been on the fourth evening, and now their bowlers were fresh for the final push.

Loading

Jamie Overton cracked a first ball boundary through square leg, but Jamie Smith was unable to make anything of the swinging ball in Siraj’s hands.

He was soon edging behind, even if umpire Kumar Dharmasena somehow needed the assistance of the third umpire to confirm the catch.

A straighter delivery accounted for Overton lbw, after Dharmasena took an eternity to raise his finger. Ball-tracking showed the outside of leg stump being clipped; Overton walked off shaking his head.

Umpire Ahsan Raza gave a still more outlandish decision against Josh Tongue, overturned on review, before Prasidh Krishna found something too full, straight and fast for the usual number 11.

That brought Woakes to the middle. It was merciful in a way that he did not have to face a delivery, but his mere appearance ranked with Colin Cowdrey going out to help England draw against the West Indies with a broken arm, or Nathan Lyon hobbling out to bat with a blown calf in the 2023 Ashes.

Atkinson has plenty of ability with the bat, and one powerful blow was knocked over the rope for six by a diving Aakash Deep.

With Woakes, he got England to within one more six of a tied game and a series win.

Siraj, however, had the final say of series marked by plenty of words. As he had done to get Zak Crawley at the start of the innings, Siraj summoned a perfect yorker to defeat Atkinson as he swung for the mid-wicket boundary.

Off stump was flattened, and India erupted. England had ultimately left too much for their tail to do in swinging conditions. Injured captain Stokes will ponder plenty of missed opportunities to win the trophy: Bazball is still without a flagship achievement in Test cricket. For a young India, led spikily by Gill, a 2-2 result was against many expectations, and may come to be considered something like an identical scoreline for Ian Chappell’s emerging Australians in England in 1972.

The series as a whole was a lively bit of advocacy for Test cricket, albeit the high-octane type of the form now played between the Big Three. Woakes’ courage was something to behold.