Virat Kohli continued his excellent record against England by bringing home the second ODI at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on Thursday. The Indian batsman came to the fore, helping India take control after an early loss of Rohit Sharma.Kohli completed his fifty in the 27th over with a straight mark from Sam Curran. The beautiful boundary not only took him to the mark but also drew loud cheers from the Cardiff crowd, with the former India captain acknowledging the applause by raising his bat. The knock marked Kohli’s 14th of 50 or more in ODIs against England, including three centuries. With this, he equaled West Indies legend Viv Richards for the second 50-plus game against England in ODI cricket. Only Sri Lankan great Kumar Sangakkara, who has 15 such wickets, is ahead of the Indian batsmen.The big incident came from the first ball of the 27th over when Kohli drove Curran straight down the stretch for four. Kohli’s well-made 65 off 66 balls ended in the 32nd over when he was caught by Adil Rashid off Jofra Archer, leaving India at 178/4.Earlier, England captain Harry Brook won the toss and elected to bowl first. India were forced to make one change as KL Rahul missed the match due to illness, paving the way for Ishan Kishan to join the playing XI. England also made two changes, bringing on pacers Saqib Mahmood and Gus Atkinson in place of Josh Tongue and Liam Dawson.India lead the three-match ODI series 1-0 after registering a six-wicket win in the opening match.
