India held their nerves to secure a narrow 15-run win over England in a high-scoring encounter in the second ODI in Cuttack on Thursday.
The win saw India take the series 2-0, but not before overcoming some tense moments. England skipper Eoin Morgan smashed his ninth ODI century to stretch the game into the final over, almost dampening superlative performances by India’s Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni. The two Indian batsmen dialled back the clock with huge hundreds that propelled their side to an imposing total of 381/6.
Singh scored an 127-ball 150, his highest-ever score in One-Day Internationals, to lead India’s revival after they were tottering at 25/3 at the five-over mark. He was well supported by Dhoni, who scored 134, his first century since 2013.
Morgan though did not let India off the hook that easily. He scored 102, getting run-out only in the penultimate over of the game. His effort saw England fight back from 206/5 to come within 15 runs of India’s total.
His effort though fell short as India closed out the game to clinch their second game of the series. Their victory helped Virat Kohli record his first series win as India’s ODI captain.
Earlier, Yuvraj and Dhoni added 256 runs for the fourth wicket as India set England a target of 382.
Yuvraj’s effort saw 21 boundaries and three sixes, while Dhoni smashed 10 fours and cleared the boundary six times. This was Yuvraj’s first century since the 2011 World Cup and the highest score by an Indian batsman against England.
England pacer Chris Woakes was the only bowler to make an impact. He was the wrecker in chief in the early overs of the game as he packed off India’s top-three batsmen, including the dangerous Virat Kohli, with just 25 on the board.
In reply, England lost opener Alex Hales with the score on 28. His partner Jason Roy (82) and Joe Root enjoyed a 100-run stand for the second wicket to raise hopes of a fitting chase, but it was snapped as R Ashwin sent Root packing 54, with England on 128. Roy kept the resistance up with a short 42-run stand with Morgan, but fell to Ravindra Jadeja.
Ashwin soon got into his own, sending the dangerous Ben Stokes and Jos Butler back to the pavilion.
Morgan staged a late fightback though and shared a 93-run stand with lower order bat Moeen Ali (55).
India finally managed to stall England’s charge towards the target in the final over, as England were restricted to 366/8 in their 50 overs.
Brief scores
- India 381/6 (Yuvraj Singh 150, MS Dhoni 134; Chris Woakes 4/60) beat England 366/8 (Jason Roy 82, Joe Root 54, Eoin Morgan 102, Moeen Ali 55; R Ashwin 3/65) by 15 runs.
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