Rohit Sharma's historic century in vain as England win Lord's run-fest to seal series

England sealed the ODI series against India with a clinical 27-run victory in the third ODI on Sunday, July 19 at Lord’s. After being put in to bat first, England posted the highest ODI score at the venue, reaching 387/3 in their allotted 50 overs. The carnage began right from the start as Ben Duckett and Jacob Bethell (91 off 93) got involved in a massive 192-run stand off 181 balls for the opening wicket.

While Bethell missed out on his century, Duckett reached the landmark for the fourth time in his ODI career. Following their dismissals, Joe Root (74* off 48) continued to be the thorn in India’s flesh once again, while Jos Buttler (41* off 13) gave the perfect finish to the innings, helping England cross the 380-run mark.

In reply, India also got off to a terrific start with captain Shubman Gill (77 off 84) and Rohit Sharma adding 147 runs for the first wicket off 146 balls. Adil Rashid (1/64, 8 overs)helped England get their first success, dismissing Gill lbw, which brought Virat Kohli to the crease. 

At the other end, Rohit Sharma silenced his critics with a sparkling century (138 off 110), becoming the first Indian to hit a hundred at Lord’s in ODIs. Kohli also tried his best, scoring 74 (60), but in the end it became too big an ask for the Indian batters on a surface that continued to slow down as the match progressed. 

India eventually finished their innings on 360/7 in 50 overs as England won their first ODI series against the Men in Blue since 2018. It was also India's third successive series loss away from home.

Top run-scorer of the Match

Top wicket-taker of the Match

Player of the Match

Jacob Bethell was adjudged Player of the Match for first helping England get off to a terrific start with his innings of 91 (93). In the second innings, he contributed with the ball as well, registering figures of 1/49 in seven overs, getting the big wicket of Rohit Sharma.

On the other hand, Joe Root was adjudged Player of the Series for scoring the most runs across three matches. He finished with 249 runs from three innings, registering three successive fifty-plus scores at a strike rate of 96.88 and remained unbeaten throughout the series. 

Turning Point

England were 325/3 after 47 overs and were eyeing a score of 360. However, Jos Buttler and Joe Root managed to get 62 runs off the last three overs to propel England to 387/3. The death-over runs proved crucial as they piled the pressure on India, eventually making the total get out of their reach.

In the second innings, India were in the chase, being 300/2 after 43 overs with several big hitters yet to come. However, Sam Curran turned the game on its head, removing both Ishan Kishan (14 off 12) and Shreyas Iyer (0 off 3) in the 44^th over. He later got the big scalp of Virat Kohli in his very next over to shut the door on India’s hopes.

What did the captains say:

Winning Captain, Harry Brook (England):

Extremely proud. We fought hard, we communicated well and we managed to win a series against World No. 1. We spoke about it a lot, the way Ben and Bethell started, it was an outstanding partnership. Rooty did Rooty things and the way Jos finished. It was tough at time, but we did the job.

Losing Captain, Shubman Gill (India):

We gave too many runs in the last few overs and that's where the game went away from us. We knew if we had wickets in hand, we'd be in the game. (Positives) Almost everyone got runs in the matches. In this match, we didn't bowl well in the powerplay. Both their openers capitalised. In the death over, they took it too far away from us. (On Rohit and Kohli) They've done really well over the years. Very happy with how Rohit batted today. The way he batted was a treat to watch.