ICC World Cup 2019: Match 38, ENG v IND – England Player Ratings

One of the most anticipated games of this World Cup, the England-India battle, didn’t disappoint the fans one bit. The pressure was on England and the hosts decided to change the plans slightly. They opted to bat first and with Jason Roy back into the eleven, the opening pair looked formidable yet again. In only 22.1 overs, Roy and Jonny Bairstow added 160 runs together.

The latter went on to register a brilliant hundred. At this stage, England looked threatening and it even seemed as if they will get a score over 400. However, the Indian bowlers pulled things back beautifully by picking up a few crucial wickets. But, Ben Stokes came to the rescue with yet another spectacular half-century that left the fans on the edge of their seats. He scored 79 off just 54 balls and helped his team get to 337/7 in 50 overs.

On an excellent batting deck, the Indian batsmen struggled at the start of the innings and scored just 28 runs in the first 10 overs. Though, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli together made up for it. While the vice-captain registered his 25th ODI hundred, the skipper got a half-century yet again. Yet, the required run rate kept creeping up all the time.

Rishabh Pant played an adventurous inning in between but couldn’t score at a great pace. Hardik Pandya played a good cameo but failed to stay in the middle right till the end. It got a little too much towards the end and India had to suffer their first loss of the tournament. They fell short by 31 runs and are yet to seal a semi-final spot.

Here are the England Player Ratings for the match

Jason Roy – 7.5/10

Jason Roy was back into the side for this match and changed the outlook of the side completely. With him at the other end, his partner Jonny Bairstow also looked much more comfortable. Roy was striking the ball just as he did a few days ago before his injury. He smashed 7 fours and 2 sixes and got out for 66 runs.

Jonny Bairstow – 9.5/10

Jonny Bairstow played an exceptional knock in this match and was a delight to watch. He hit the ball cleanly and got to his century at a rapid pace. However, he looked like a completely different player once he reached the triple figures. Bairstow was struggling to time the ball and didn’t look at ease. After consuming a lot of deliveries, he got out for 111 off 109 balls. Bairstow, however, was exceptional on the field and saved many runs for his team.

Joe Root – 5/10

Joe Root came into bat when his team was in an excellent position. He decided to anchor the innings at this stage but never seemed to get going at the same pace. While he rotated the strike well and hit a couple of boundaries, the English Test skipper couldn’t accelerate the way he’d have liked to do. The pressure seemed to have got a bit too much on him when he played a ramp shot and perished for 44 after facing 54 deliveries.

Eoin Morgan – 2/10

Firstly, it seemed as if it was a tactical error when Eoin Morgan walked out to bat at four instead of Jos Buttler. Secondly, he failed to make any sort of difference with the bat. He took 9 balls to score just 1 run at that stage of the innings when his team was in a great situation. His innings helped India find the momentum back. He marshalled his troops well on the field and made good bowling changes.

Ben Stokes – 9/10

Ben Stokes played a match-defining knock and pushed the total out of India’s reach. Even though he didn’t find much support from the other end, he maintained his calm and played a glorious knock. The all-rounder brought up his fourth fifty of this World Cup and scored 79 runs off only 54 balls. He bowled 4 overs with the ball where he conceded 34 runs.

Jos Buttler – 4/10

Jos Buttler came into bat when there weren’t too many overs left in the innings. He tried to tee off against the Indian bowlers straightaway and hit two humungous sixes. The wicket-keeper batsman perished after getting a quickfire 20 off just 8 balls.

Chris Woakes – 8.5/10

Chris Woakes bowled an exceptional spell opening the bowling for his team. The first three overs that he bowled in the innings were maidens and he never let the batsmen get after him. Apart from dismissing KL Rahul for a duck, Woakes also got the better of Rohit Sharma just when he was looking threatening after getting to his hundred. Moreover, he took a fabulous catch on the field to dismiss Rishabh Pant. However, despite bowling those three maidens, he was more expensive that he’d have liked as he conceded 58 runs.

Liam Plunkett – 8.5/10

Liam Plunkett will remember this game for the rest of his life, for, he got the wicket of the best chaser in the world, Virat Kohli. The Indian skipper looked dangerous and got to 66 runs. While he’d have fancied another hundred, Plunkett was fortunate enough to deceive him. He also dismissed Rishabh Pant.

Jofra Archer – 7/10

Jofra Archer might not have picked up any wickets in the game but his contribution can’t be underrated. He was brilliant towards the death of the innings and was economical throughout. Archer kept the pressure maintained from one end and helped the bowlers from the other end pick wickets. In his 10 overs, he conceded 45 runs.

Adil Rashid – 3/10

Adil Rashid was good in this game but couldn’t trouble the Indian batsmen much. He didn’t look to take too many risks against him and the leg-spinner conceded 40 runs in the 6 overs that he bowled.

Mark Wood – 2/10

It wasn’t the kind of outing that Mark Wood would have hoped for. He was the most expensive frontline bowler for England on the day and gave away 73 runs in his 10 overs. He couldn’t pick up any wickets.