Staying afloat in the ODI series was the main concern for Team India till Sunday but Headingley's morale-boosting victory has injected new optimism in the Indian camp with current and former captains-- Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly-- believing that India can win the series.
India went into the fifth ODI trailing 1-3, just one defeat away from conceding the series.
But stellar performances from Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni not only fashioned India's 38-run win under the Duckworth/Lewis method but also kept the series alive for the visitors.
"I thought we batted beautifully. It was a good all-round batting performance and a great start again from Sachin and Sourav," Dravid said. "It's nice to go to London with a chance to win the series."
Ganguly celebrated his 300th ODI in style, with a Man of the Match performance. He scored an impressive 59 and shared a brilliant opening stand of 116 runs in 118 balls with Sachin Tendulkar to give India a rollicking start.
He then turned his arm over in fine fashion to knock down two England wickets as India went on to win the game by 38 runs to reduce the deficit to 3-2 in the seven-match series.
"We lost a game we should have won at Old Trafford. But a lot of teams have won three games in a row, we have done it before and hopefully we can do it again," said Ganguly.
"If we play one more good game at The Oval, Lord's will be anybody's game," he said.
The teams now move to London to play the last two matches at The Oval (September 5) and Lord's (September 8).
Dravid said the side got just the perfect score and the top order also lived up to the expectations.
"It was a perfect batting performance. We needed a big score because we knew Duckworth-Lewis method would come into play," Dravid said.
"Sachin and Sourav gave us a strong start, Gautam Gambhir sustained the tempo and Yuvraj then finished with a flourish."
His opposite number, Paul Collingwood, said the target was stiff but the conditions were not that bad.
"When an opposition gets 320-odd you are always going to question it. It was overcast but the ball didn't do as much as I thought it would.
"But give a lot of credit to Tendulkar and Ganguly, it was hard to stop them," he said.
To make matters worse for the hosts, Ravi Bopara injured his thumb, while trying to catch Gautam Gambhir off his own bowling.
It would be a new worry for the side, which did not field its talismanic all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who is nursing a recurring ankle injury.
"They are going to be assessed in the next couple of days and hopefully they are not as bad as what they might seem," Collingwood said.
