Root keeps England on top against India

LONDON, Aug 16, 2014 (AFP) - Joe Root continued his personal runfest against India as England maintained their grip on the fifth Test at The Oval on Saturday. England, 2-1 up in the five-match series, were 385 for seven at stumps on the second day -- a first-innings lead of 237 runs after India had been skittled out for just 148 on Friday. Root was 92 not out and Chris Jordan unbeaten on 19, with the pair having added an unbroken 67 in just 62 balls for the eighth wicket.

Saturday saw Root join two all-time great batsmen in becoming only the third England player to score a half century in every Test of a fivematch series after Wally Hammond against South Africa in 1938/39 and Peter May, also against South Africa, in 1955.

John Edrich scored fifties in all six-matches of England's Ashes-winning series against Australia in 1970/71.

India took four wickets in quick succession before tea with off- spinner Ravichandran Ashwin claiming two for three runs in eight balls, as England captain Alastair Cook (79), Gary Ballance (64), Ian Bell (seven) and Moeen Ali (14) were dismissed.

But at the interval England were still 246 for five, 98 runs ahead, with Root 11 not out and Jos Buttler unbeaten on 12 on a day where overhead conditions largely favoured the batsmen and much of the early moisture in the pitch had evaporated.

The pair had put on 80 before wicketkeeper Buttler, bidding to score fifties in his first three Test innings, fell for 45 when he chipped fast bowler Ishant Sharma straight to Ashwin at short mid-wicket.

Root then hooked a short ball from swing specialist Bhuvneshwar Kumar for six before completing a 93-ball fifty. That followed the 23-year-old Yorkshireman's scores of 154 in the drawn first Test at Trent Bridge, 66 in India's 95-run second Test win at Lord's, 56 in the hosts' 266-run victory at Southampton and 77 in their even more emphatic innings and 54-run success at Old Trafford.

England resumed Saturday on 62 without loss after Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who made 82, had stood firm during India's latest batting collapse of the series.

Cook was 24 not out and Sam Robson 33 not out.

However, Robson had added just four runs to his score when, in the second over of the day, the Australia-born opener had his off stump knocked over by fast bowler Varun Aaron after playing down the wrong line.

But England's all left-handed second-wicket pair of Cook and Ballance were barely troubled as they took the hosts to 148 for one at lunch. (MS Dhoni 82; C Woakes 3-30, C Jordan 3-32) (overnight 62-0) A. Cook c Vijay b Aaron 79 S. Robson b Aaron 37 G. Ballance c Pujara b Ashwin 64 I. Bell c Dhoni b Sharma 7 J. Root not out 92 M. Ali b Ashwin 14 J. Buttler c Ashwin b Sharma 45 C. Woakes c Dhoni b Kumar 0 C. Jordan not out 19

(b14, lb3, w1, nb10) 28 (7wkts; 105 overs) S Broad, J Anderson

1-66 (Robson), 2-191 (Cook), 3-201 (Ballance), 4204 (Bell), 5-229 (Ali), 6-309 (Buttler), 7-318 (Woakes)

Kumar 24-3-86-1 (1w); Sharma 24-8-58-2 (4nb); Aaron 25-1-111-2 (4nb); Binny 12-0-580 (2nb); Ashwin 20-2-55-2.

England lead India by 237 runs runs with three first-innings wickets standing. England

Kumar Dharmasena (SRI) and Paul Reiffel (AUS) Tim Robinson (ENG)

Ranjan Madugalle

(SRI)