An all-round performance from Ben Stokes, who followed up his fifty with the bat with three wickets helped England win the third ODI by five runs and avoid a whitewash at Kolkata. Despite losing the toss, England posted 321/8 and some brilliant death bowling meant England got their first win of this tour.
After a 98-run opening partnership, England lost both openers Sam Billings and Jason Roy in quick succession but fifties from Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow ensured that England posted their third 300+ of the series.
In response, India lost both openers early and after Virat Kohli departed, it was always going to be difficult. But Kedar Jadhav and Hardik Pandya dragged the game to the final over but simply couldn’t get over the line as India lost by five runs.
Jadhav credits Dhoni for his calmness
The leading run-scorer in the three-match series, Kedar Jadhav was unsurprisingly the Man of the Series. Speaking about his plan for the final over in which India needed 16 to win, he said: “I was planning to play all six balls, I knew if I could do that the bowler will be under pressure. Just that the ball I got out to, I was not in position to hit the big shot, I was still moving and that is why I mistimed.”
He also thanked Dhoni for helping him stay calm. “The thing is, since the time I came in the team, I've been spending a lot of time with Dhoni and it has helped me deal with situations calmly,” the 31-year-old said.
Speaking about the pitch, Jadhav said: “Specially if you pitch it up there was some movement and that is why I didn't want to come forward, I wanted to stay back and with the dew, I knew normal shots will get me boundaries.“
He also believes there is still room for improvement. “First game when I was in the middle, with Virat, this is the time where you can learn how to finish games and that is what I told Hardik as well. If we play to our potential through the end, we would win. I was more happy if we would have won this game but I am satisfied with what I have done in this series. I can still improve"
For his 39-ball 57 and three wickets, Ben Stokes won the Man of the Match. "It was a difficult time last time we came here, put it down to good captaincy from Morgan getting my overs out of the way before the end. Billings' has got a safe pair of hands, and most people have them. Always backing him to catch that,” he said.
“We've waited a long time to win on this tour, think we forgot to be honest. it's been fantastic to be part of three really tight games and thankfully we ended up with a win for England.”
Chris Woakes admitted that it was nice to close the game especially with dew playing a major role. He said: “Tough conditions, good to get the win against a tough Indian side in front of this crowd. It was nice to bowl on, thie pitch but at the same time you miss your length you get hit for four.
“It's something we struggled to do, picking wickets consistently through the middle. Good to close out with a win. My first time here, beautiful ground. We'd have liked to have won the series, but credit to the Indians who have played some really good cricket”
Here are the reactions from the cricket fraternity:
Michael Vaughan:
VVS Laxman:
James Taylor:
Mark Butcher:
Anjum Chopra:
Brand-new app in a brand-new avatar! Download CricRocket for fast cricket scores, rocket flicks, super notifications and much more! 🚀☄️
