England registered their first win of the tour of India with a dramatic five-run win in the final over of the third One-Day International match in Kolkata on Sunday. Pacer Chris Woakes bowled a steady last over that saw India come within a touching distance of England’s score of 321/8, but the hosts could not cross the line despite another fine performance by Kedar Jadhav (90).
Chasing England’s target of 322, India needed 16 runs off the final over. Jadav produced a six and four off the first two deliveries. Woakes, though, held his nerves as he stifled Jadhav, who fell off the penultimate delivery. With six needed off the final delivery, Bhuvneshwar Kumar failed to connect as England closed out the three-match series with a win after having lost the previous two games.
England had India on the ropes at 173/5 at one stage. Jadhav then shared a 104-run partnership with Hardik Pandya (56) for the sixth-wicket to prop-up India’s chase. Pandya, though, fell with India still needing 48 more runs for the win off 27 deliveries. Jadhav kept calm and took the game to the last over, even as wickets kept falling at the other end. Unfortunately for India, he could not take them all the way.
Earlier, skipper Virat Kohli scored a sturdy 55, after openers KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane, who replaced Shikhar Dhawan for the game, fell cheaply. Yuvraj Singh (45) gave good support to Kohli, as the duo took India past the 100-run mark in 19 overs. Both batsmen then fell in quick succession to help England wrest back control. MS Dhoni too fell after making a start (25). The spell saw India’s required run-rate rise steadily and proved to steep in the end.
Earlier, India had won the toss and chose to field. Jason Roy (65), Jonny Bairstow (56) and Ben Stokes (57 not out) shone with fighting half-centuries. Pandya was the standout performer with the ball, bagging three wickets. Ravindra Jadeja pitched with two crucial wickets at the top of the order to stall England’s bright start.
Despite the hurdles, England’s batsmen managed to take the score past 300. Their medium-pacers, led by Woakes, did not let their batsmen down and helped them steal a consolation win.
Brief scores
England 321/8 (Jason Roy 65, Jonny Bairstow 56, Ben Stokes 57*; Hardik Pandya 3/49) beat India 316/9 (Virat Kohli 55, Hardik Pandya 56, Kedar Jadhav 90; Ben Stokes 3/63) by five runs.
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