INDIA secured the ODI series against England with a four-wicket win in the second match on Sunday, taking an unassailable 2-0 lead ahead of the Champions Trophy. Captain Rohit Sharma led the chase with a 90-ball 119, helping India reach the 305-run target in 44.3 overs.
A floodlight failure delayed India’s innings for 30 minutes, but it did not affect Rohit, who struck seven sixes and 12 fours. Earlier, England posted 304 all out with one ball remaining, opting to bat first at Barabati Stadium.
Ben Duckett (65) and Joe Root (69) hit half-centuries as England looked set for a big total at 219-3 in the 39th over.
"It was good and (I) really enjoyed being out there, scoring some runs for the team," Rohit said after winning the player-of-the-match award. "Obviously it was an important game with the series on the line but I broke it down into pieces about how I wanted to bat."
England started strongly, with Duckett and Phil Salt (26) adding 81 runs for the first wicket. Duckett raced to a 36-ball fifty before falling to Ravindra Jadeja in his first over.
Harry Brook (31) could not build on his start, while Root and skipper Jos Buttler (34) kept England in a strong position. However, India struck back, taking key wickets as England slipped to 272-7 in the 48th over.
Liam Livingstone’s 32-ball 41 pushed England past 300, but he and Mark Wood were run out in successive deliveries. Jadeja finished with 3-35, took a catch, and fired a throw from the deep to run out Adil Rashid.
Rohit leads India’s chase
Rohit, who had struggled for runs in recent Tests and ODIs, started with a streaky boundary off Gus Atkinson before finding rhythm, racing to a 30-ball fifty.
Shubman Gill (60) played a steady knock, hitting nine fours while taking the aerial route only once. He added 136 runs with Rohit before Jamie Overton bowled him. Rashid then removed Virat Kohli for five, but Rohit kept India in control.
Rohit brought up his 32nd ODI hundred with a six off Rashid but was dismissed soon after, caught by Rashid off a Livingstone full toss.
Shreyas Iyer made 44 before being run out, while KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya also fell, keeping England’s hopes alive. However, Axar Patel’s unbeaten 41 ensured India completed the chase.
"I thought we did a lot of things well," Buttler said. "We got in some nice positions with the bat. We just needed a few of us to catch fire and get up towards 350. Rohit played a terrific knock."
England’s Jacob Bethell missed the match with a hamstring injury, making him uncertain for the Champions Trophy. Tom Banton has been called in as cover.
The final ODI will be played in Ahmedabad on Wednesday. India won the preceding T20 series 4-1.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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