Virat Kohli: "We love being written off"

The India captain hails his side's character as the tourists stage a dramatic fifth-day charge to beat England and go 2-1 ahead in the five-Test series

PLAYER RATINGS: Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur and Rohit Sharma blow England away

India roar to victory over England in fourth Test

India captain Virat Kohli is taking extra satisfaction from victory in the fourth Test after in his words being "written off" following the inning defeat to England at Headingley.

The tourists now lead the five-Test series 2-1 after their 157-run win following a storming display on day five at The Kia Oval.

Kohli's side recovered from several positions of peril in the match; being bowled out for 191 in the first innings, conceding a lead of 99 after both sides had batted once, being six wickets down with a lead of only 213 on day four and then seeing England reach 100 without loss in the fourth-innings chase.

It is that unrivalled ability to respond that the skipper was so impressed with.

He told BBC's Test Match Special: "It was unbelievable. We love being written off and I think a lot of people after Leeds really stood up and said, will India be able to come back? 

"But we've shown time and time again that we are a top side and we have been at the top for a while now, and that's because of the belief and the passion that we have in this group. This win is as special as Lord's, if not more."

As England allowed several positions of authority to slip through their fingers, inspired displays from a handful of Kohli's cohorts led to the victory.

^{Kohli led from the front on day five}

Rohit Sharma scored a second-innings century, Shardul Thakur struck two fifties and picked up some key wickets and Jasprit Bumrah claimed two wickets in five balls after lunch to help drag India over the line.

"I think the best thing about both wins has been the character that the side has shown," added Kohli, who has seen his side win both of the London Tests, added to Sky Sports.

"If you look at how the game panned out - you mention the 100-run (99) lead that England had in the first innings, to come back from there and the way we batted in the second innings, showed that we are not down and out, and we're not looking to survive in this game.

"If there is an opportunity to put the opposition under pressure, we will go for it and we put up a total on the board which was always going to be very difficult to chase, especially heading into the latter half of day four and day five.

"I'm really proud of the character the team has shown, especially this morning, the way we bowled. 

"I think it's definitely among the top three bowling performances I have witnessed as India captain."