The Second ODI between India and England from Pune saw England claim chase down a huge target, quite comfortably and won by 6 wickets to level the series.
England made a few changes as Captain Eoin Morgan was replaced due to injury. Jos Buttler was given the captaincy. Dawid Malan,Liam Livingstone and Reece Topley came in for Morgan,Billings and Wood. For India, Rishabh Pant came in to replace the injured Shreyas Iyer. England won the toss and elected to bowl first once again.
This time, India didn't got the start like they had in the previous game. They lost both openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan quickly and found themselves into some trouble at 37/2 in 8.4 overs.
Virat Kohli and KL Rahul then tried to bring the boat back to the shore. They approached the game slowly, exchanging strikes between them regularly without playing any risky shots.
This slow approach paved the way for another half century for both Kohli and Rahul. After completing their fifties they duo decided to accelerate the innings.
However Kohli's wait for another International Century continued as Kohli who tried to lay it to Offside, got an outer edge and found Buttlers glove. It was a moment of redemption for Jos Buttler, who had already dropped Kohli's catch earlier by the same bowler Adil Rashid. The 121 run stand was finally broken as Kohli departed for 66 runs of 79 balls.
Rishabh Pant then walked out to support KL Rahul. Well Pant played the only way he knows. He kept on firing from the start, as Rahul got a supporting partner.
KL Rahul would go on to silence his critics,as he completed a magnificent hundred. After a disappointing performance in the T20I series, Rahul showed why the Board backing him was the right decision.
Pant on the other hand, kept on attacking. He would soon complete his fifty, as the stage was set for a grand total. After Rahul departed for a knock of 108 runs of 114 balls(7 fours and 2 sixes), Hardik Pandya took his place.
Thanks to Rishabh Pant's 77(40) and Hardik Pandya's 35(16), India managed to put up a total of 336/6 in 50 overs, with 126 runs coming in the last 10 overs.
England openers Jason Roy and Johnny Bairstow did exactly what they did in the first ODI. They duo were left upset in the previous game due to England's sudden collapse despite putting up a great start and setting the platform.
The duo didn't allow the Indian Bowlers to settle as runs kept on coming from all angles for them. This aggressive gameplay saw the duo added a 110 run opening partnership. This time Jason Roy would finally broke his jinx of getting out in the forties in this series as he completed his half Century.
Their partnership was broken down by a sheer brillance of fielding from Rohit Sharma. After a great save, he threw the ball at the keepers end and Pant made no mistake he dismissing the stumps. It was a complete breakdown of communication between the openers as Bairstow and Roy were left Midway in no man's land.
Ben Stokes then joined Johnny Bairstow in the pursuit of the target. Despite Roy's dismissal, there was no change in gameplan for England as the runs kept on coming for England through Boundaries with ease.
Johnny Bairstow did one better than what he did in the previous game. After failing out of ton by six runs on 94, he completed his hundred this time as England kept on smooth sailing towards the target.
Soon the duo would complete a 100 run stand partnership in just 87 balls as Stokes too kept on smashing the ball out of the park. At the time of the second drinks break, England's score was 211/1 in 31 overs.
After Bairstow completed his hundred, Stokes decided to go all out without any pressure. The duo soon wrapped up 150 run partnership as the power hitting display continued.
India would finally get the Breakthrough in the 36th over as Bhuvenshwar Kumar dismissed Ben Stokes at 99. Stokes needed a single to complete his ton. He tried to hook it back, but ended up playing it in the hand of Pant behind the stumps as he missed out his hundred. The Job was however done. Stokes departed for a 5 star knock of 99 off just 52 balls with 4 fours and 10 sixes!
In the next over, Prasidh Krishna dismissed Johnny Bairstow as out of nowhere, a sign of comeback was on for India. He tried to play it over extra cover but ended up playing it straight into the hands of Virat Kohli. Bairstow contributed 124 runs of 112 balls which included 11 fours and 7 sixes. Was a comeback actually on.....?
..... In the very same over Krishna dimissed the England Skipper Jos Buttler for a duck. The game looked like turning once again as the hope for a miracle continued.
The Flashbacks of previous games came right in front of England's eyes.
Dawid Malan was joined by Debutant Liam Livingstone. In the end it was too little to late. At the end of the 40th over, England had already crossed 317/4.
This time England finished off the job,unlike the first ODI as they won the game by 6 wickets as they crossed the target of 337 in just 43.3 over with 39 balls still left as they showed why they are the World Champions.
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