Nagpur: Alastair Cook savoured a “very special” series win after England triumphed in India for the first time in 27 years.
Centuries from Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell secured a draw in the fourth Test in Nagpur and a 2-1 win in the series.
Captain Cook, whose team lost the first Test, said: “It’s a very special day for us; it’s been a special tour and we’ll have great memories.
“Today was a fantastic effort by Trott and Bell. It was a flat pitch, but how calmly they batted was fantastic.”
England’s success was all the more impressive given their terrible start to the series. England lost the opening Test which led to gloomy forecasts of a whitewash.
“We didn’t handle the Ahmedabad wicket well but the others were all very different and we adapted well,” added Cook, who was named man of the series after scoring three hundreds and 562 runs in the four-match series.
“The bowlers have been brilliant and our batters have contributed big runs.
“Everyone in the squad can be very proud, especially after Ahmedabad and that heavy defeat. The guys who played a couple of games all made a difference and the amount of effort the guys have put in for me, I can’t ask any more,” he added.
James Anderson, who was awarded the Man-of-the-Match award after taking 4-81 in India’s first innings, was described as the difference between the two sides by India captain Mahendra Dhoni.
The fast bowler took 12 wickets and played a key part.
“When we come over here, people think that spinners are going to get all the wickets but we knew that the seamers had a job to do,” Anderson said.
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