England captain Alastair Cook must be wondering where his next win in a One Day International was to come from, as England were once again completely outclassed by a dominant India. While England may have demolished the Indian side in the 5 match Investec Test Series, they are finding India to be a completely different proposition in limited overs cricket. India won the 3rd match of the ODI series quite easily by 6 wickets and 7 overs to spare. England were never in the running.
England started off brightly enough, having put into bat by Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Indian medium pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma and Mohammad Shami bowled with a tight line and length, but were quite ineffective when it came to taking wickets. Alastair Cook and Alex Hales began solidly enough and did well to put up an 82-run partnership before Hales lost his wicket to the part time off spin of Suresh Raina. Hales played another fine innings without really going on to make a big score. This time, he was out for 42.
Cook didn’t last much longer either, losing his wicket to the occasional spin of Ambati Rayudu. It was an embarrassing way to get out as Rayudu is actually a wicketkeeper batsman for his state side and rarely ever bowls. But Cook had only himself to blame, as he got out for another average score without making a big one.
The wickets of Hales and Cook made Dhoni realize that this Trent Bridge wicket was a pitch for spin bowlers and from the 15th to the 42nd overs from then on, he relied completely on his spinners – Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravi Jadeja, and the part timers, Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu. His strategy paid rich dividends, as England struggled to get going, scoring only two fours from the 15th to the 42nd over. Ashwin and Jadeja were in particular quite brilliant, bowling with a tight line and length, giving nothing away.
Despite some lusty hitting by James Tredwell at the end, England could only make 227 on a placid track. This was enough to send the English supporters trickling out of the ground, and as Indian supporters filled up Trent Bridge, loudly supporting their team and booing James Anderson and other England players, this match had a distinct subcontinental feel to it.
India started their run chase brightly enough, with Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane playing aggressively from the start. Dhawan was soon out after hitting a couple of glorious fours, as it has become a routine with him, but Virat Kohli looked in fine fettle, and was timing the ball quite beautifully.
Rahane was out for 45, giving Steven Finn his first wicket for England in over a year. But Finn never quite looked to be at his best and will have to play many more matches to get into his groove as a fast bowler. That brought in Ambati Rayudu. Rayudu has been on the Indian cricket scene for over a decade, but has never made much of an impact. This has led to him play every match as though it would be his last and he played with great passion here at Trent Bridge.
After Virat lost his wicket, getting out when looking set for a big score, Rayudu and Suresh Raina had no trouble keeping the scoreboard ticking, rotating the strike and hitting some fine shots in between. Cricket looked an easy game as India won easily, overtaking England’s score with 7 overs to go and with 6 wickets in hand. Rayudu was unbeaten on a very well composed 64.
India go into the next match at Birmingham on Tuesday full of confidence, and calls for Alastair Cook’s ouster from the ODI cricket team are only getting more stringent by the day.
