Dynamite News Ind vs Eng, 3rd ODI: Bowling form a worry as Virat Kohli and boys gear up for final challenge
Down 1-0, England made a thrilling comeback in the ODI series as the visitors registered a crushing six-wicket win over India on Friday. After conceding the game from an advantageous position, Virat Kohli and boys will now look to make amends when they take the field in the series-deciding third ODI on Sunday.
Pune: Down 1-0, England made a thrilling comeback in the ODI series as the visitors registered a crushing six-wicket win over India on Friday. After conceding the game from an advantageous position, Virat Kohli and boys will now look to make amends when they take the field in the series-deciding third ODI on Sunday.
While India did score a mammoth 336/6 in the second ODI, the total was built on a slow start which saw the hosts scoring just nine runs in the first four overs. It was KL Rahul's ton and Rishabh Pant's blistering fifty that helped Team India finish on a high. And skipper Kohli did admit that it was a decent total and rued the lack of execution by the bowlers. The India skipper also refused to take the credit from the English side for the enthralling win.
On the other hand, despite having conceded 336 runs, there was no dent in England's confidence. The visitors in the first half of their chase replicated what they did in the first ODI but ensured the English side didn't collapse in a must-win game on Friday.
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Hit with injuries, the visitors might have begun the game on backfoot but Ben Stokes' swashbuckling 99 and in-form England opener Jonny Bairstow's 112-ball 124 saw England register an easy six-wicket win over India. England stand-in skipper Jos Buttler hinted that the visitors will continue to play in similar fashion and score big and quick runs.
For India, it was a forgettable bowling performance as Stokes sent both Kuldeep Yadav and Krunal Pandya on a leather hunt. While Kuldeep gave away 84 in his 10 overs, Krunal leaked runs at an economy of 12 in the second ODI.
Since England had ticked all boxes, Team India might do some chopping and change going into the series decider keeping in mind the two things they need to focus on -- a firing start with the bat and a good show with the ball in the powerplay. One thing the hosts must keep in mind is that for the first time in this tour, the winning momentum is with the visitors ahead of the series decider.
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England's ODI Squad: Jos Buttler (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonathan Bairstow, Sam Billings, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Liam Livingstone, Matt Parkinson, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, Mark Wood.
India's ODI squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), KL Rahul (wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Krunal Pandya, Washington Sundar, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Md. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur. (ANI)