Kevin Pietersen's smashing century denied India victory in the third and final Test but could not prevent them from winning the series 1-0, at The Oval in London, on Monday.
Pietersen played a cracking innings of 101, including 18 boundaries, as England finished on 369 for 6 wickets, chasing an improbable 500 to win the match.
Ian Bell also smashed his way to a quick 67 off 62 deliveries, inclusive of 12 boundaries, to steady proceedings after the fall of Pietersen's wicket.
The draw meant that India won the three-match series 1-0, their first series victory on English soil since 1986.
Zaheer Khan played a major role in the series triumph, claiming 18 wickets in the three Tests, at an average of 20.33, including the nine-wicket haul in the second Test. He was fittingly adjudged man of the series.
Electing to bat, India put up a mammoth 664 in the first innings, courtesy Anil Kumble's 110, his maiden Test century. They then bowled out England for 345, but India captain Dravid shockingly decided against enforcing the follow-on in conditions best suited for swing bowling. Batting again, India declared their second innings at 180 for 6, setting England 500 for victory.
India had won the second Test at Trent Bridge by seven wickets after escaping with a draw in the first at Lord's.
Morning session: (70 runs, 30 overs, 2 wickets)
S Sreesanth started well and gave the openers a lot of problems, particularly Alastair Cook whom he troubled a lot with outgoing deliveries.
In fact, off the very first ball of the match he had a confident leg before appeal turned down as the ball struck just above the knee. This time, fortunately, umpire Ian Howell called correctly.
Both Zaheer Khan and Sreesanth bowled well without much luck and Dravid was forced to bring on Anil Kumble.
India struck when R P Singh claimed a wicket in his first over, the 11th of the innings. The left-hander got Strauss to play at an out-swinging delivery, which he edged straight to VVS Laxman at second slip.
Strauss had, however, done his job, scoring 32 off 112 deliveries and six boundaries, adding 79 for the first wicket Cook. After playing with so much discipline for nearly two hours, Strauss was utterly dejected to give his wicket away with such a loose shot.
For India, it was a shot in the arm and now they had a perfect chance to attack the new batsman and look for a few more quick wickets.
Three overs later Kumble dismissed Cook for 43 as he tried a fine flick on the leg side, but Laxman, at leg slip, produced a sharp catch. It was a very important wicket for India as Cook was looking well set at the wicket. But, as has been the case with him right through the series, Cook failed to carry on and play a big knock.
Kevin Pietersen got off the mark with a boundary off the first ball he faced when Kumble presented him with an easy full toss.
Singh was very effective in his first slip as he got a lot of movement, more than Sreesanth and Zaheer. He bowled a five-over spell, giving away 10 runs, while effecting that important breakthrough.
Kumble also toiled hard from the Vauxhall end, trying all his variations, but they were more of the slower leg spinning deliveries. One such one got the edge of Vaughan's bat, but Rahul Dravid at slip dropped a low catch. Get the wicket of the England captain 15 minutes before the lunch break, on a pitch where it was difficult to take wickets once the batsman got set, would have been the perfect tonic for India.
At the lunch break, England were 126 for 2 in 50 overs. Vaughan was unbeaten on 22, with Kevin Pietersen on 17, both batsmen having hit three boundaries each.
England need another 374 runs to win the Test and level the three-match series. For India, they just need a few quick wickets after lunch and get into the lower order as soon as possible.
But the first task is to dismiss either Vaughan or Pietersen early because if the two batsmen get going they will be very difficult to get out, especially on this good batting wicket.
Post-Lunch session: (106 runs, 28 overs, 1 wicket)
Tendulkar and Kumble continued after lunch. The former got the ball to turn quite a lot. In his first over after the break he nearly got the wicket of Pietersen when he induced him into having a go at a wide one but the ball just missed the edge.
With the light fading, Dravid opted to bring back pacer Sreesanth. Tendulkar and Kumble had bowled eight overs without much success.
Kumble changed ends and switched to the pavilion end to see if he could make an impression from there.
As it got darker, the batsmen spoke to the umpires, who promptly offered them the light. Both Pietersen and Vaughan sped to the dressing room and the Indian team followed them though with much reluctance.
England reached 149 for 2 after 59 overs and India's chances of winning were also fading with each minute.
Wonder how Dravid must be feeling now? Could India have fared better had they opted to impose the follow-on? Many such questions come to mind now.
But the umpires called the teams back within five minutes though the light hadn't improved much.
Dravid led the team's sprint out to the middle as India looked to pick the remaining eight wickets.
The brief break seemed to have worked as they struck. Vaughan lost concentration and was caught behind off Sreesanth for 42. He hit five boundaries in 42 deliveries in his 66-run partnership with Pietersen for the third wicket. It was a big breakthrough for India and once again it seemed India's chances of victory had come alive.
Kumble bowled just three overs from the pavilion end before he was replaced by Zaheer. The left-armer, bowling round the wicket, got Pietersen to drive at a wide one, which, luckily for the batsman, travelled in the empty space between slips and gully.
Tendulkar was brought into the attack again in the 67th over of the innings, but was hit for two boundaries by Collingwood.
Zaheer then had a horrible over. The first delivery was bounced very short and it went over the wicketkeeper. He failed to find the right length for the rest of the over and was twice despatched to the boundary by Pietersen, who raced to 48.
Tendulkar was now turning the ball miles, especially his leg spinners. He got the edge of Collingwood's bat in the over, but wicketkeeper Dhoni failed to hold on to a sharp chance.
Pietersen completed his half-century in the 71st over off 108 deliveries, hitting nine boundaries. He was the key for England now and it remained to be seen whether he could anchor England to safety.
Pietersen and Collingwood now began to take on the Indian bowlers. Pietersen, particularly, was making his presence felt and boundaries came regularly off his bat.
It was a session that England dominated except for Vaughan's wicket.
Pietersen batted with great determination and purpose to stay unbeaten on 71 at the tea break. His 126-ball knock included 13 boundaries. He is looking in great shape for a big knock.
Collingwood, not out on 23, also played solidly. The batsmen added 80 runs for the fourth wicket at an impressive run rate of 4.61 per over.
At the tea interval, England reached 232 for 3 in 78 overs, needing another 268 runs to win the match in a maximum of 32 overs.
India have a difficult task on hand. With just a session to go, it may prove to be really difficult to get the last seven England wickets, barring for a major batting collapse which cannot be ruled out. It all depends on how Kumble performs.
India may have well achieved their target of winning a Test series in England, their first in 21 years in that country. But it is disappointing that they chose to put up a defensive show and not go for the kill, just for the sake of a record.
Also playing in England's favour is the fact that the light is fading fast, and it might come into play at some stage in the post tea session.
Post-tea session: (137 runs, 3 wickets, 32 overs)
Collingwood brought up the 100-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Pietersen, when he dismissed a full toss from Tendulkar to the mid-wicket boundary in the 82nd over.
In his next over, Tendulkar conceded two boundaries as Pietersen unleashed two cracking shots through the off-side. Tendulkar bowled it short on the leg and middle stump from round the wicket, but Pietersen rocked back, made room and crashed it to the boundary ropes twice in the over.
Dravid had no hesitation in taking the new ball next over and handed it over to Sreesanth.
The move paid instant dividends when Sreesanth struck with his very first delivery. Collingwood was struck just on the off-stump by an incoming delivery and this time umpire Ian Howell correctly ruled him out.
Collingwood played a steady innings of 40, but, more importantly, gave Pietersen good support as they put on 114 runs for the fourth wicket.
Pietersen kept attacking the ball and completed a well-deserved century, his 10th Test century in just his 30th Test. He wasted no time in the nineties as he raced from 90 to 100 in just five deliveries, inclusive of two boundaries. In fact, he brought up his hundred in style, flicking Sreesanth through mid-wicket for a boundary.
It seemed to have affected his concentration a bit as he was dismissed four balls later, edging an out-swinger from Sreesanth as Dinesh Karthik at first slip completed a brilliant catch.
The 27-year-old played a brilliant innings of 101, hitting 18 boundaries in his 159-ball knock, but did his wicket come a little too late for India?
Pietersen walked back disappointed as he failed to stay the whole distance.
Zaheer's struggle was evident as he bowled just two overs with the new ball before giving way to R P Singh. He has been receiving treatment for a slight thigh strain in the last two days and maybe it was hampering him too much to continue bowling.
Bell calmed some nerves in the dressing room with a couple of boundaries off Singh in the next over as the out-of-form Matt Prior joined him at the wicket. With 20 overs to go, could India pick the remaining five wickets and register a famous victory?
While Matt Prior started cautiously, Bell continued to play freely, hitting boundaries on either sides of the wicket. He looked very positive right from the outset and gave the loose deliveries the full treatment as he raced to 33 from six boundaries.
Bell completed his half-century in the 103rd over with a single on the leg side. It took him 50 deliveries and included nine boundaries and provided England with the much needed solidarity after the loss of Pietersen.
Bell got four more boundaries in the next over bowled by Kumble. The first one was an overthrow, while the second was beautifully driven through midwicket. He hit two boundaries through the fine leg region and midwicket to race to 67 from 57 deliveries, with 12 boundaries.
His joy was however shortlived when he was trapped leg before wicket by Kumble for a quick 67. He hit 12 boundaries, adding 74 runs for the sixth wicket with Prior, but lost his wicket at possibly the wrong time for the hosts.
With just five overs to go and only the England bowlers to follow, India had a real chance to finish it in style.
Prior and Ryan Sidebottom hung on bravely as India kept on piling the pressure with every delivery. Sidebottom used his long reach to good effect, as he kept coming forward and negotiated the spin well with a straight bat against both Tendulkar and Kumble.
Prior hung on for 93 minutes, finishing unbeaten on 12 from 64 deliveries, while Sidebottom held on well for 3 from 15 deliveries.
India could not pick any more wickets and England, 369 for 6 in 110 overs, finished with a draw.
The draw also meant that India won the three-Test series 1-0, their first victory on English soil since 1986. It also finished England's record of being unbeaten in a home series since 2001.
All credit to Pietersen and Bell for their fighting knocks and not letting the team get bogged down. But once India had got that huge first innings score, the only option for England was to save the match, which they did quite well.
Dravid's decision of not imposing the follow-on on the fourth day might well be debated for a long time to come. No one knows what could have happened had he put England in on the fourth day. Many will say India took a defensive step and let England off the hook.
But it is not a time to look back and regret his decision. Rejoice and celebrate India's first Test series victory in England for 21 years.
