'I thought we will easily take it home...': Harry Brook's 'unfortunate' verdict on England's defeat against India in fifth Test

Mohammed Siraj's stunning five-wicket haul on Day 5 of Oval Test saw England lose the final Test of Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy by a slim 6-run margin. The victory meant that the Men in Blue levelled the series 2-2 and snatched victory from the hosts on the final day.

Following the conclusion of the thrilling match, England's Harry Brook gave his verdict on the side's heartbreaking defeat. The batter who was chosen as the Three Lions' Player of the Series by India head coach Gautam Gambhir, remarked that they thought that they had the match in the bag. He further heaped praise on Siraj for the pacer's sensational bowling effort, which took the game away from Ollie Pope & Co's grasp.

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"I thought we'll easily take it home in the morning, but the way Siraj bowled, he deserved the success today. I thought the pitch would be flatter after the roller. But it zipped around under cloud. But Siraj has had a phenomenal series and a finish," Brook said following the conclusion of the match, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

"Unfortunate we didn't get over the line. Was going really well when I Joe and I were batting. But this series has been full of ups and downs and the finish was fairly fitting," he added.

Brook finished the series with a century

Brook was one of England's top performers in the five-match assignment, finishing with 481 runs under his belt from 10 innings. The 26-year-old had played a fantastic knock of 111 runs from 98 deliveries on Day 4 and had also formed a brilliant 195-run stand alongside Joe Root, taking the hosts close to the target of 374. He eventually lost his wicket to Akash Deep, who got the much-needed breakthrough for India and the side never looked back following that wicket.

The England batter further remarked that it was amazing for him to be a part of such a series where every match ended up going down to the wire and got finished on the fifth and final day.

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"I've played alright this series. Not able to win it is devastating. Happy to contribute as much as I have. It's been a very intense series, we've not left anything out there. Awesome series to be a part of. Great advert for Test cricket," Brook stated.

Meanwhile, the victory in London will definitely be a major confidence booster for Shubman Gill & Co. who took the victory from England's hands on a thrilling final day which will be remembered by Indian fans for years to come.