Having already wrapped up the series, India arrived at Eden Gardens, eager to continue their momentum, in what would be their final ODI before the 2017 Champions Trophy in June.
Virat Kohli won the toss and followed the recent trend of bowling first. On a slightly different surface from the first couple of games, England still managed to surge to a mammoth total of 321. The run-chase began badly for the hosts with their top five back in the dressing room before they could cross the 200-mark.
However, a rapid sixth-wicket partnership took the game right down to the wire. When the game eventually reached its final over, the visitors somehow held their nerve to pull off a 5-run consolation victory.
Here’s how each Indian player performed in the nail-biting final ODI in Kolkata.
Hardik Pandya – 8.5
After a promising series opener and a below par second game, Pandya came good with the ball once again. Unlike the other seamers, he operated at the right channel and utilised the conditions properly. His 3-wicket spell towards the business end of the innings went a long way in reducing England’s final score.
In the batting department, his attacking 104-run partnership with Kedar Jadhav helped pull India back from the trenches.
Kedar Jadhav – 8.5
This has undoubtedly been a breakthrough series for Jadhav. He followed up a match-winning century in Pune with a handy cameo in the second game. In front of a jam-packed stadium, the pugnacious batsman continued to battle hard and came up with another well-compiled knock. With the pressure reaching feverish levels in the final over, he finally holed out for a 75-ball 90.
Virat Kohli – 7
Kohli’s attacking instincts were evident in his field placements. He kept searching for wickets right throughout the innings despite runs flowing thick and fast. The master of modern day chases was at it again when he negotiated a tricky period against the swinging new-ball. Despite being reprieved by Jake Ball at third man, the run machine could not quite make it count and nicked off after going past 50.
Yuvraj Singh – 6.5
Coming into the crease much earlier than he would have hoped, Yuvraj struggled to find his rhythm and was even hit on the chest by a searing delivery from Ball. Once he got his eye in, the runs began to flow with some of his pull shots serving as a visual delight. Just when he got into his groove, an ill-fated flick ended his stay.
Ravindra Jadeja – 6.5
As he so often does, Jadeja gave India their first two wickets with a clever delivery to dismiss Roy, completing his mastery over the opening batsman. But, he did struggle to control the flow of runs on a surface which did not provide any assistance to him. But, when his team desperately needed him to see them through, he flat-batted a front-arm jab right into midwicket’s hands.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 5.5
Bhuvneshwar picked up from where he left off the other night, with a tight spell at the start of the innings. When he was surprisingly brought back a bit too late, the seamer copped a few hefty blows and conceded 35 runs from his last 3 overs. In the end, it was a tad too unrealistic to expect him to belt the final delivery for a six.
Jasprit Bumrah – 5
Bumrah was used by his skipper at various stages of the innings. In spite of starting admirably, he deteriorated as the game progressed. When Jonny Bairstow steered his short delivery right into third man’s throat, his foot was found to be over the permissible line. While he did manage to bounce out Moeen Ali, the end-overs specialist gave away 16 runs in the penultimate one.
MS Dhoni – 4.5
With the gloves, he was as safe as ever. His sound judgment of the Decision Review System (DRS) even prompted the commentators to rename it as the Dhoni Review System (also DRS). However, the 35-year-old could not quite kick on with the bat despite getting himself off to a reasonable start.
Ravichandran Ashwin – 4.5
In what was pretty baffling, Ashwin reverted to his inexplicable defensive mindset of the opening match. Putting his trademark enticing flight and conceiving drift in the locker, he just attempted to stem the flow of runs by darting them in.
As a result, the game-changer in Cuttack was reduced to a mere one-trick pony this time around. As the game moved towards the pressure stages, nerves got the better of him and he threw his wicket away due to a lapse in judgment.
Ajinkya Rahane – 2
Drafted into the playing eleven in place of an injured and out of form Shikhar Dhawan, Rahane had a massive opportunity to resuscitate his limited-overs career. However, hesitant foot-movement as well as David Willey’s late in-swing accounted for him early in the innings.
KL Rahul – 1
Rahul suffered his third failure in the series in as many matches. Woefully short on runs, he tried to hit his way out of trouble with a six and a four in the first over. But, the needless recklessness cost him his wicket with a mistimed front-foot pull shot ending up in the wicket-keeper’s gloves.
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