By Jonathan Agnew BBC cricket correspondent at The Oval

It is not impossible that the final day of the series could provide intense drama and excitement, but the odds must be that the Test match will drift quietly to sleep.

It is most unlikely that Nasser Hussain would take a gamble by declaring mid-afternoon and set India a target.

So the only way either team has a chance of forcing a victory is for England to be bowled out, leaving India a testing, but tempting run chase.

Hussain will be unlikely to gamble

The manner in which Marcus Trescothick and Michael Vaughan set about their innings last night suggested that India's spinners hold few terrors.

Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh were able to spin the ball at times, but spin bowlers need bounce to be really dangerous and this pitch is simply too benign for that.

If the two openers are still together at lunchtime, England's lead should exceed 200, but I feel Hussain will worry about the strength of India's line up - Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid in particular.

And he will not risk losing the series with a speculative declaration.

Dravid will never forget this series. Assuming he does not have to bat again, he finishes the series with an average of 100.33 which is a quite remarkable achievement.

A series to remember for Dravid

He scored three successive centuries, converting this one into a double in so doing.

And the only way England looked likely to dismiss him was by running him out which, on 217 - which is precisely what happened.

No other Indian - even Sunil Gavaskar - has scored more runs for India in a series against England and, added together, his innings this summer total more than the duration of a whole Test match.

England's bowling was much more penetrative today.

Dominic Cork hustled and bustled, filling the Andrew Flintoff role in banging the ball in short.

But Andy Caddick was back to his best, time and again attacking the off stump and looking far more dangerous that he had at Headingley.