By Callum Dent
Joe Root struck an unbeaten 92 as England moved into pole position to win the fifth and final Investec Test after overcoming a mid-afternoon wobble to build a first-innings lead of 237 on day two at the Kia Oval.
With the hosts losing four wickets for just 38 runs, Root joined forces with Jos Buttler and steered them back on track with an attacking sixth-wicket partnership of 80.
Even when the latter and Chris Woakes fell in quick succession, the Yorkshireman kicked on with a number of stylish strokes all round the wicket.
The right-hander and Chris Jordan added 67 in 10.1 overs as England closed on 385 for seven.
Half-centurions Alastair Cook and Gary Ballance earlier overcame the departure of Sam Robson to take their side past the tourists' 148 with a second-wicket stand of 125.
Robson played down the wrong line and was bowled by Varun Aaron for 37, ending an opening alliance of 66 with Cook.
But Cook, strong on the drive, and Ballance, punishing anything over-pitched early on, soon took England into the lead during a 37-over stay at the crease.
The opening batsman brought up his half-century with a strong cut for four off Ravichandran Ashwin, and an uppercut over the cordon off the wayward Bhuvneshwar Kumar saw Ballance reach the milestone shortly after the resumption.
Cook took his stand with Ballance into three figures, but should have departed twice in quick succession.
However, Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane both grassed routine opportunities at first slip off Aaron, bowling a much-improved probing line from round the wicket, and Ashwin.
Cook, now England’s leading run-scorer in Tests versus India, failed to cash in on his two reprieves, though, Vijay making up for his earlier error by holding on in the cordon to hand Aaron a second scalp.
Cook’s dismissal, for 79, breathed new life into India and, surprisingly, started a collapse that also saw Ballance, Bell and Moeen depart in the space of 11 overs.
Ballance, on 64, was caught by Cheteshwar Pujara at silly point pushing forward at Ashwin and, after Ian Bell edged the first ball of Ishant Sharma’s new spell behind, Moeen tamely played on to the spinner.
Youngsters Root and Buttler were unflustered by the situation, frustrating India with a counter-attacking approach.
The latter was on the hunt for a third successive Test half-century, only to fall five runs short when he clipped Ishant to Ashwin at midwicket.
Woakes lasted just four balls before providing Mahendra Singh Dhoni with a catch down the leg side.
Root, who hooked Bhuvneshwar for six, became the third England player to record a fifty in every game of a five-match series when he reached the milestone with a pulled three.
The 23-year-old and Jordan, with an unbeaten 19, then ran a tired India side ragged towards the close, recording a flurry of boundaries to the delight of the crowd.
Match scorecard / Live ball-by-ball commentary
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Evening Session
6.30pm - STUMPS! Eng 385/7; Root 92, Jordan 19 - Root needs another eight tomorrow to reach a ton. He has contributed heavily to England's lead of 237.
6.24pm - Root boosts his chances of making a century tonight, producing two stylish drives off Stuart Binny. There may only be one over left and he has 90 to his name. Another Jordan edge, this time dropping short of the cordon.
6.17pm - Jordan edges through a vacant third-slip position to take his partnership with Root to 50.
6.14pm - Can Root reach three figures tonight? He moves to 79 with two more boundaries. The right-hander and Jordan has run between the wickets well and are heaping more misery on the tourists.
5.55pm - A controlled edge from Root flies through the slips for four before he collects three with a drive. To make matters worse for Ishant, Root collects another two runs when a direct-hit hands him an overthrow following a sharp single.
5.50pm - Chris Jordan, who was hit in the midriff by Ishant in the previous over, is soon in his stride, pulling Bhuvneshwar for four.
.@joeroot05's wagon-wheel as he reaches fifty. #EngvIndpic.twitter.com/9ZIRcOhAb0
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 16, 2014
5.43pm - FIFTY! Root (93b 2x4 1x6) - Root pulls Ishant for three to raise another half-century. A fine summer continues for the Yorkshireman. He has reached the milestone in every match this series.
5.39pm - WICKET! Woakes c Dhoni b Bhuvneshwar 0; Eng 318/7 - Root is unflustered by Buttler's departure, pulling Bhuvneshwar for six and then driving through the covers for three. But Chris Woakes then tickles the next ball down the leg side to Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
5.32pm - WICKET! Buttler c Ashwin b Ishant 45; Eng 309/5 - Buttler times a full delivery from Ishant straight to Ashwin at midwicket. Finally some reward for the tall paceman.
5.29pm - Ishant is bemused when the umpire turns down a huge lbw appeal against Buttler. It looked a little high. India are frustrated.
5.26pm - CHANCE! Buttler edges Bhuvneshwar through a vacant fourth-slip position for four before Root has to dive to make his ground after a mix-up with his partner. A direct-hit would have ended his innings on 38.
5.07pm - A full Ishant Sharma delivery is met with the middle of Buttler's bat and the ball races through the covers for another boundary. Another follows in the next over. Same batsman, same shot, same result. England are 300 for five.
5.03pm - Root is rapped on the pads by Bhuvneshwar, although the ball was heading down leg.
4.51pm - Buttler crashes Aaron through the covers to move to 28. India are struggling to make a breakthrough with the fresh cherry. Root has 36 of England's 289 for five, a lead of 141.
2 - Root (1,617 in 40 innings) has passed Gower (1,616 in 41) as the player with second most Test runs for England before turning 24. Youth.
— OptaJim (@OptaJim) August 16, 2014
4.39pm - Root gets two through mid-on to take his stand with Buttler to 50.
4.32pm - The crowd chant 'Rooooooot' as the right-hander clips a leg-stump half-volley from Varun Aaron to the rope. He then inside-edges the paceman for a single. Jos Buttler digs out a yorker that races past the slips for four.
4.26pm - India take the new ball immediately. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has it in his hand.
4.24pm - Root warms up for the new ball, due at the end of this over from Stuart Binny, with a beautiful cover drive for four.
4.07pm - Joe Root is fortunate not to be bowled when a Ravichandran Ashwin delivery spins between bat and pad and races away for two byes. The new ball is due in six overs.
And he's off! @bumblecricket heads to the skies! #engvind https://t.co/lCRdzn9pTe
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 16, 2014
Afternoon Session
3.40pm - TEA! Eng 246/5, Root 11, Buttler 12 - Joe Root and Buttler reach the tea interval unscathed after a surprising collapse that saw England lose four wickets in 11 overs. The latter tickles Ashwin to the fine-leg rope from the final delivery of the session.
3.35pm - Buttler shows no signs of the problem affecting his batting by punishing an Ashwin long-hop, crashing him the cover rope.
3.30pm - Jos Buttler receives treatment on a leg problem sustained during the last over from Ishant. He is back to his feet now, though.
3.20pm - WICKET! Moeen b Ashwin 14; Eng 229/5 - Moeen is fortunate not to provide point with a catch as his expansive drive slices past the fielder. The left-hander then tries to leave a delivery from Ashwin, but fails to get his bat high enough and it rebounds on to his stumps.
3.04pm - Moeen quickly gets in his stride by taking 11 runs, including two leg-side fours, from a tiring Aaron, now on at the opposite end.
2.56pm - Ishant's first delivery to Moeen Ali flies through the hands of first slip and races away for four byes. That really should have been called a wide. Harsh on Dhoni.
2.54pm - WICKET! Bell c Dhoni b Ishant 7; Eng 204/4 - India are fighting back strongly now as Bell edges the returning Ishant's second ball behind to Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Gary Ballance now has scored over 500 runs in this series at an average of over 80. #EngvInd
— BBC TMS (@bbctms) August 16, 2014
2.49pm - WICKET! Ballance c Pujara b Ashwin 64; Eng 201/3 - Ballance pushes forward at Ashwin and is caught by Cheteshwar Pujara at silly point.
2.48pm - Ian Bell takes a brace of twos into the off side off Aaron to move England past 200. The lead is now 53 and growing all the time.
2.38pm - Ballance punches Ashwin through midwicket for four to take his run tally for the series to 500.
2.25pm - WICKET! Cook c Vijay b Aaron 79; Eng 191/2 - Vijay makes up for his earlier error by holding on to a low catch at slip to finally hand Aaron Cook's scalp. The paceman has bowled a more probing line in the last 20 minutes.
Young cricket fans with their Investec @CricketUnited 4 & 6 cards at The Oval. Photo: Visionhaus pic.twitter.com/cA3RZguMYN
— Investec Cricket (@InvestecCricket) August 16, 2014
2.14pm - CHANCE! - Cook is having some luck today! This time Ajinkya Rahane puts him down at slip off Ashwin.
2.10pm - Aaron, operating from round the wicket, is troubling Cook just outside off stump. The left-hander inside-edges for a single. Cook is now England's leading Test run-scorer versus India, dislodging Graham Gooch.
2pm - CHANCE! - Murali Vijay drops a sitter at first slip to deny Varun Aaron a second wicket and hand Cook a life on 65.
1.52pm - CENTURY PARTNERSHIP - Cook takes a single into the off side off Ashwin, a shot which sees the second-wicket stand move into three figures. Brilliant stuff.
1.51pm - FIFTY! Ballance (77b 11x4 0x6) - Ballance flicks Bhuvneshwar off his legs and then uppercuts him over the cordon for four to bring him his fifty.
1.41pm - Alastair Cook tickles the first ball after the resumption, delivered by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, to the fine-leg rope. Gary Ballance rocks on to the back foot and cuts Ravichandran Ashwin powerfully for four.
Morning Session
1pm - LUNCH! Eng 148/1; Cook 56, Ballance 40 - Ballance drives the final ball of the session, from Ashwin, through the covers for four to take England level with India's 148.
A look at Cook's wagon-wheel as the skipper's fifty puts England on the brink of overtaking India's first inns total pic.twitter.com/B8edQUZ82a
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 16, 2014
12.54pm - Cook tucks the returning Bhuvneshwar off his hips and through the diving Virat Kohli at midwicket for four. The England skipper is moving along nicely.
12.44pm - FIFTY! Cook (124b 5x4 0x6) - Cook raises his bat after cutting Ashwin for four.
12.35pm - India turn to spin 25 minutes before lunch, Dhoni throwing the ball to Ravichandran Ashwin.
Partnership between Cook & Ballance building surely... #EngvInd pic.twitter.com/RyBa8B3ksc
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 16, 2014
12.21pm - Mahendra Singh Dhoni gifts England four more runs when a delivery from Ishant, which Cook leaves outside off stump, squirts through his gloves. Sloppy.
12.19pm - Ballance leans into an off-drive and collects another four in Stuart Binny's first set of six. That brings up the fifty partnership.
12.14pm - Ishant, operating round the wicket, drops one short to Cook, who powerfully pulls to the square boundary. England are 38 runs behind now.
11.56am - Ishant Sharma is on at the Pavilion End and has not threatened yet. Ballance pierces the slips with an edge off Aaron that falls short and flies away for four.
11.39am - Ballance punishes a leg-stump half-volley from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, crashing him for four to move to 17 from as many balls.
11.27am - Alastair Cook pulls Aaron to the midwicket boundary and, in the paceman's next set of six, punches him down the ground for three. Ballance then gets in on the act, flicking Aaron off his legs to the fine-leg and midwicket boundary. The over costs 11.
There have been 58 innings in test cricket since the last 100 run opening partnership #bbccricket
— BBC TMS (@bbctms) August 16, 2014
11.09am - New batsman Gary Ballance gets off the mark first ball with a controlled edge that races past the slips for four.
11.07am - WICKET! Robson b Aaron 37; Eng 66/1 - Robson, playing down the wrong line, misses a full delivery from Varun Aaron and is cleaned up.
11.06am - Sam Robson steers the first boundary of the morning, in the second over, through the vacant third-man region.
Pre-Play News
10.56am - The ground is a sea of blue today for the Cricket United charity day.
Job done, it's time to switch to comms microphones for day 2 of our 200th live England Test on Sky. #EngvInd pic.twitter.com/eRGQbNoDpc
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 16, 2014
10.50am - Chris Woakes, who took 3-30, returned career-best Test figures yesterday and, in his post-match interview with ecb.co.uk, praised the efforts of his fellow pacemen.
10.40am - Runs will be the order of the day for England as they look to advance into a first-innings lead. Alastair Cook and Sam Robson, with 24 and 33 respectively, guided their side to 62 without loss last night, 86 runs behind India’s disappointing 148.
10.30am - Good morning and welcome to live coverage of the second day of the fifth and final Investec Test between England and India at the Kia Oval. The sun is out in the capital and another enthralling day awaits.
Watch out Nasser!!! The mower missed so Nass will be on @SkySportsNewsHQ very shortly! #EngvInd pic.twitter.com/r6qHYeUNvx
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 16, 2014