INDIA 308 for 6 (Rohit 119, Gill 60, Iyer 44, Axar 41*) Beat England 304 (Root 69, Duckett 65, Jadeja 3-35) by four wickets
Hey Reached His Landmark From 76 Balls With the Last of Theose Sixes, A Glorious LOFTED Drive Over Wide Long-Off Off Adil Rashid, and Had He Not Scuffed A LIM LIMFD A LIM LIMFED A LIMFED A. Eded, The Margin of Victory Could have been crushing. INTAD, India Injected A Few Late Jitters Into Their Chase, Losing Three Wickets in Five Over Shreyas Iyer Was Needlessly Run Out For 44, and it required Axar Patel’s Calm 41 Not Out Outer Gainst Embarrassment.
Despite His Well-Documented Struggles in Australia this winter, and notwithstanding his unconvincing 2 from seven balls in nagpur on four, Rohit Has Played Too Few Few Odis of Late to Form . This was only his fifth 50-over innings since the world cup final in November 2023, where his haul of 597 runs at 54.27 had beed instrumental in his team’s march to the final. Since then, He Had Added Two More Fiftees in Three Innings in Sri Lanka in August. Even with his 38th birthday looming in April, and with 11,000 career Odi runs beckoning in ahmedabad on wedding, he’s looking good for a few more yet.
As in Nagpur, Rohit’s First Seven Balls Were The Least Convincing of His Innings, ALTHOTHHUGH TIME AKAY ALESO SERENK SEVEN. His first boundary was a streaky four through deep third off gus atkinson, but when he found his range one ball later, it was as if a switch has been flicked in his game-brain. Out came a sublime pick -up the pads which flew over Deep Midwicket for Six – Arguable the best shot he had played all winter – and suddenly his time attuned to the surface. Saqib Mahmood, Who Had Troubled Him in A Tight FIRST Over, was blazed for two more sixes in overs three and five, over extra cover and long-off, and the chase was on.
Rohit Had Eased Along to 29 off 18 when the floodlight failure kicked in, and the frustration could have been all the more acquuteted when money entred the Attack after the Resumption and Struck Him . However, England’s review was deemed by ball-trucking to have only been clipping leg, and rohit’s response was to slam his own foot to the pitch of his next ball, and lift clen TH Six in Eight Overs – As many as england managed in their entrances.
Another pull for four from Gill brought up the hundred partnership in the 14th over, and one over later, he had his own fifty – from 45 balls – and the 21st time in 49 ODI innings that he had got there, at an average that briefly NUDGED Above 60. England’s Lack of Variety was Expeded When Atkinson – Still Smarting from his brutal treatment in the opening t20i – Returned to the Attack to be Hoisted for two more Pulled Boundaries A rank half-tracker that was dumped behind square For his fifth six.
The breakthrough, when it was, came somewhat out of the blue. Jamie overton had been pumped for two fours in four balls by gill when he he hit back with a superb yorker that plucked out the off stump at 141kph. The momentary Silence Around Cuttack, however, was almost immediatily replaced by a room of acclaim, as Virat Kohli – Back in the team after his knee niggle in Nagpur – Walked out the Stage Set ATI
It would not prove to be a lengthy stay. One Smartly Driven Four Off Atkinson Got The Crowd Purring, But Kohli Had Faced Just Eight Deliveries when Rashid Turned a Legbreak Past Another Forceful Drive, And PHIL SALT SALT SALT SALTER SALTER SALTHER WHENG Gland’s review showed a feathered edge. Having been recalled to the xi in place of India’s rising star, yashasvi jaiswal, kohli’s failure Y odis ago That he was player of the Tournament for his 765 runs at the 2023 world cup.
Intead, Both Set Batters Fell in the Space of Four Eversion Unused. India’s Spinners, Inevitably, WERE The Catalysts, In Particular Jadeja, Who Proved Too Wily for some one-dimensional shot selection as he returned the Outstanding Figures of 3 for 35.
Livingstone at Least Got The Memo With a Powerful Late Knock of 41 From 32 Balls, Including Two Big Sixes Off Harshit Rana, As Did Rashid, Who Struck Three Four Four 5 Ls, only to run himself Out just just when his eye was in.
Worryingly for England, Thought, India Had Planty of Chances to Close the innings out for even fewer runs. They Missed Two Clear Chances in the Deep, Including The Most Casually Awful Drop from Axar at Deep Third When Salt Had Made Just 6 From 12 Balls, While Rohit Was Left Waas Ave been plumb lbw to axar For 16, with India having chion not to review.
Harry Brook, Whose Technique Against Spin Has Been Under Particular Scrutiny on this Trip, Made 31, but might have been removed for a five-ball duck Had Umpire Chris Brown Umphel Esis, Varun Chakravarthy, that ball-tracking suggested Would Clip Leg. At the age of 33, varun earned his Odi debut on the strength of 14 wickets at 9.85 in the t20is. He Needed Just 11 Deliveries to Make His Mark, Ending Salt’s Stay to Trigger a Familiarr Middle-Proverrs Squeeze that that India Would not Ultimately Relinquish.
Andrew Miller is UK Editor of Espncricinfo. @Miller_crickt