Joe Root produced another masterful chase for England to beat India by four wickets in the second ODI in Cardiff, finishing unbeaten on 99 and helping the hosts level the three-match series 1-1. And they go forward Virat Kohli almost while chasing. Entering the first ball of England’s innings after Ben Duckett was dismissed for a duck, Root took early pressure from Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna before managing a chase of 234. His 99* from 133 runs, with nine boundaries, shut down England’s innings as he forged a vital partnership with Sam Curran, Will Jacks and Gus Atkinson to lead the home crowd.The knock also saw Root overtake Virat Kohli in the list of most ODI runs (minimum 2,000 runs).Highest batting average in ODI runs (2,000 runs):
- MS Dhoni – 102.71
- Joe Root – 91.59
- Virat Kohli – 89.07
- AB de Villiers – 82.77
- Michael Clarke – 73.86
Following the win, Root said the results were more important than the years missed.“Being there at the end and getting the job is probably the best feeling you can get in cricket. You don’t play big events; you play to win games. The series is alive now, and that’s what we wanted to go for today,” said Root in the post presentation. Reflecting on the chase, Root admitted that batting was difficult throughout the match and said England’s batsmen held India back after the Kohli-Iyer partnership threatened to take the game away.“It was difficult to bat all game. The bowlers did very well to get things back after the tie and gave us goals that we felt we could chase. We knew we had to hit time, take the pressure in the quarters and settle down. Sometimes you have to win bad and bad, and today was one of those days,” he added.
Root chased the target easily
India ruined their position after being asked to bat first at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff. Despite a 114-run stand between Virat Kohli (65) and Shreyas Iyer (66) that took the visitors to 180/3, a collapse in the middle saw them lose their last seven wickets for 53 runs and bowled out for 233. Jofra Archer (3/47) and Gus Atkinson (3/50) played with the ball, while Jasprit Bumrah’s unbeaten 20 helped India pass the 230-run mark.England’s chase started badly as Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Ben Duckett with the first ball of the innings before Prasidh Krishna reduced the hosts to 8/2. However, Joe Root fueled the run with a superb 99 off 133 balls*, receiving valuable support from Will Jacks (30), Sam Curran (26) and *Gus Atkinson (23)**. Atkinson cruised past the winning boundary to seal a four-wicket victory, leaving Root one run short of a century.The result left the three-match ODI series 1-1, with the decider to be played at Lord’s on July 19.
