Hits and misses: 3rd ODI, England vs India
An anti-climatic series decider saw England steam rolling India with ease and comfort thus winning the 3 match ODI series 2-1.
After winning the toss Eoin Morgan decided to put India into bat. The swinging conditions tested India’s batsmen. After a slow start, Kohli and Dhawan steadied India’s ship before Dhawan gifted his wicket away to a careless runout.
Just when India started building another partnership, Adil Rashid came in and with his leggies, damaged the back of India’s middle order. Dhoni tried his best to hold one end strong but he too was dismissed. Late cameos from Bhuvi and Shradul ensured India ended up with a below par yet respectable total to bowl at.
England started the chase with a bang as both the openers especially Bairstow kick-started the innings with a flurry of boundaries. With such a blistering partnership at top England played sensibly in the middle overs handling the spinners easily. Both Root and Morgan looked untroubled at the crease. It was a walk in the park for them as India’s bowling looked toothless.
Let’s take a look at some of the players who had a good day at the office and some others who missed out on the opportunities of making an impact.
#1 Miss: Rohit Sharma
One of the world’s best white ball batsmen, Rohit Sharma, found himself struggling against the moving ball again in the third ODI. After Morgan put India into bat, the openers were expected to give India a blistering start but what was on display was the complete opposite.
Rohit started very cautiously and was looking all at seas against the ball which was swinging and seaming. He was beaten quite a few times. Rohit took 17 deliveries scoring just 2 runs. As the pressure mounted Rohit came down the track on 18th delivery and hit a slog straight into the hands of Mark Wood thus ending his struggle in the middle.
It’s hard to understand why a player of such high quality in the form of Rohit Sharma has not been able to perform against the moving ball. Rohit definitely missed a chance to prove himself again.