India playing XI's report card for the 3rd ODI against England
India held their nerve to overcome a Sam Curran blitz and seal the 3-match series against England with a 7-run win in the final ODI at the MCA Stadium in Pune.
After skipper Virat Kohli lost the toss yet again, India got off to a good start thanks to Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan. But the England spinners provided regular breakthroughs in the middle overs, and it took splendid counter-attacking fifties from Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya to get India to an above-par score.
In response, England's in-form openers failed to deliver in the series decider. Although Curran nearly pulled off the victory, the visitors were always behind the eight ball in the chase.
Here is the Indian playing XI's report card for the 3rd ODI against England.
IND v ENG 2021, 3rd ODI: India Player Ratings
Rohit Sharma: 6/10
Rohit got off to a start and failed to capitalise for the third game running. However, on this occasion, it was a beautifully bowled googly from Adil Rashid and not a careless shot that brought about his downfall for 37.
Shikhar Dhawan: 7.5/10
Dhawan set the tone of the Indian innings with a positive innings in the powerplay. Although he tamely chipped one back to Rashid to walk back for 67, his knock put India in the ascendancy very early in the game.
Virat Kohli: 3/10
Kohli started off his innings with a boundary, but Moeen Ali got the better of the Indian captain with a sharp off-break. It was a poor shot from Kohli since the ball was never there to cut, and he made some amends by plucking a stunner to dismiss Rashid.
KL Rahul: 1/10
Coming in at No. 5 in this game, Rahul once again took his time in the middle. Just when he tried to accelerate, he mistimed a full-toss from Livingstone to find short fine-leg. It was an outrageously careless shot from the 28-year-old, who simply can't afford to throw his wicket away in this fashion.
Rishabh Pant: 8.5/10
Pant's 78 off 62 balls was the match-changing innings for India. Counter-attacking against the England spinners to perfection, the youngster gave his team momentum in the middle overs and a sizeable total to defend.
Krunal Pandya: 4.5/10
Krunal came in with his team in need of quick runs, but struggled to put his foot on the pedal at the death. He laboured to 25 off 34 balls with zero boundaries, and bowled 4 wicketless overs for 29 runs.
Hardik Pandya: 8.5/10
The other Pandya brother had a contrasting time in the middle. Confident in his strokeplay and never letting the opposition bowlers settle, he blasted 64 off 44 balls before being strangely bowled down the leg-side. The all-rounder had a mixed day in the field as he shelled two sitters and plucked a blinder.
T Natarajan: 6/10
Natarajan played his first ODI of the series, and the rust was there for all to see. Although he bowled a number of wides and was lucky to get the wicket of Ben Stokes, he held his nerve in the two overs he bowled at the death - including the all-important final over. The left-armer dropped Curran in the penultimate over, but made up for it soon after.
Shardul Thakur: 9/10
Thakur put in another masterful all-round showing for India. He scored a crucial 30 off 21 balls when Krunal was struggling to find the middle, and followed it up with a 4-wicket haul in the second innings. The only blemish on his performance was an inexcusable dropped catch that could've cost India the match.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar: 9/10
There is no doubt over the fact that Bhuvneshwar has returned to his best, and his two wickets of Roy and Bairstow in the powerplay were invaluable. He finished with 3 wickets for just 42 runs and was the most economical bowler on display in Pune.
Prasidh Krishna: 2/10
After taking 6 wickets in his first two ODIs, Krishna was brought back to earth in this game. The young quick was completely devoid of any consistency, and the unforgiving English batsmen took him for 62 runs in his 7 overs.