Ind vs Eng 3rd ODI : India won by 7 wickets
Ranchi : India strolled to a seven-wicket win over England in the third ODI at the JSCA International Stadium here Saturday, taking a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.
India needing just 156 runs to win, overhauled the target in only 28.1 overs with 131 balls to spare. Virat Kohli returned to form, scoring an unbeaten 77 off 79 balls while Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh chipped in with 33 and 30 runs respectively to complete the rout.
India had bowled out England for a meagre 155 in 42.2 overs after putting the visitors in to bat.
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All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was the pick of the bowlers with three wickets and was well supported by Ishant Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin who took two wickets apiece.
Indian Captain MS Dhoni has won the toss and Chose to bowl first against England.
This is first ODI match hosted in Ranchi’s stadium, JSCA International Cricket Stadium. Ranchi is home town of Indian skippers Mahendra Singh Dhoni who is in form but worrying about other batsmen form.
Winning was of utmost importance: Dhoni
“It was of utmost importance to win this match. We did not let the opposition score too many runs which allowed us to have a comfortable chase. The wicket wasn’t exactly flat and the pacers had a bit of help as the ball was nipping around a bit. We did not get too many wickets at the start but we restricted them,” said Dhoni, who inaugurated the stadium Friday along with Jharkhand governor Syed Ahmed.
“Gautam (Gambhir) and Yuvraj (Singh) played well. Both their innings’ were very important. Our new ball bowlers Bhuvneshwar (Kumar) and Shami (Ahmed) also performed really well. They have been consistent in the few matches they have played.
“Ishant (Sharma) is the most experienced pacer in our team and we keep him as the third bowler for that reason. Also, later he can generate good bounce because of his height. Overall I think this was a perfect performance,” added Dhoni, who hit a boundary to seal the match.
“Virat (Kohli) played a superb innings. He has had a good patch. However, he did not score runs in the last 3-4 matches. The media sometimes rates that as being ‘out of form’ but I do not think that. When you are batting so well you have a few days when you don’t perform.”
“It was good to see how he placed his innings and how calculative he was, not being afraid to go for the big shots,” said the India skipper.
Asked about his decision to come up the order at No.5, Dhoni said: “Suresh (Raina) was supposed to come in at No.5. He, however, asked me to go next and I agreed. Fortunately or unfortunately Yuvraj got out and I got a chance to get out in the middle,” said Dhoni.
We failed as a batting unit: Cook
“I think as a batting unit we have not scored runs in the last two games. We were not attacking and the batsmen also got out due to poor shot selection. We have to score the runs which are utmost important in any ODI game,” said Cook, who himself scored a meagre 17.
“We have to look and see if we are missing a trick or not. It was disappointing that no one performed. We’ll be hurt for the day but we should be ready for Mohali.”
“First of all the damage had already been done at the start. Then we needed early wickets at the start of the Indian innings which did not happen. It is frustrating when you don’t play to your potential. If we want to win the series then all of us have to stand up and perform,” added Cook.
On being asked about the performance of his team, Cook said: “We have an experimental squad but it is good enough to win a series. We have a couple of guys who are being rested at the moment but this is a good team.”
All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja clicked again Saturday as he took three wickets in 6.2 overs with an excellent economy rate of three. He was also the man of the match in the second ODI at Kochi for his all-round performance. However, Cook said he performed well but they have also had their days.
“Yeah, Jadeja bowled well. He has had two good days but we have hit him for more than 60 runs in 10 overs in the past as well,” Cook told media persons in the post-match press conference.
Team :Indian Captain MS Dhoni has won the toss and Chose to bowl first against England today here in Ranchi on 19th January 2012.
England Team : AN Cook (Captain), IR Bell , KP Pietersen , EJG Morgan , C Kieswetter , SR Patel , Joe Root , TT Bresnan , JC Tredwell , ST Finn , Jade Dernbach.
India Team : G Gambhir , AM Rahane , V Kohli , Yuvraj Singh , SK Raina , MS Dhoni (Captain), RA Jadeja , R Ashwin , B Kumar , Shami Ahmed , I Sharma .
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Match Details :
Toss : India, who chose to bowl first
Umpires : SJ Davis and S Ravi
TV umpire : VA Kulkarni
Match referee : AJ Pycroft
Reserve Umpire : PG Pathak
Photo : AFP (Input from IANS)
india won this match