India, June 25 -- Ben Stokes' decision to field first on a batting-friendly Headingley pitch raised plenty of eyebrows, but England's dramatic five-wicket victory over India in the first Test gave the captain every reason to smile and respond. After winning the toss, Stokes chose to bowl despite sunshine overhead and a dry surface, a call that looked questionable when India marched to 430/3 in their first innings.

But England stormed back to dismiss the visitors for 471 and later chased down a daunting 371, their second-highest successful chase in Test history, with Ben Duckett's sensational 149 setting the platform.

"You make a decision, and you don't know what is going to happen. We did what we needed to do in the crucial moments of t...