India v England 2nd ODI - India Player Ratings

India must have headed for the 2nd ODI at Cuttack with a relatively more confident mindset considering the amazing run chase they pulled off in the last match. Today’s victory makes them the winner of the series as they’re 2-0 up with a game to play. The pitch was called the “older brother of Pune”, so you could expect a 300+ score on it, but again- surprise, surprise! The Englishmen added an extra pacer, Liam Plunkett in place of Adil Rashid while India added Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav was made to sit this one out.

However, things didn’t start on a good note for India as England won the toss and elected to bowl first. What followed was a disastrous start by the openers and the early wicket of Virat Kohli. But the unpredictability of cricket took a new form as we saw a brilliant recovery on India’s part as we saw India moving from 25/3 to a mammoth 381/6 (third highest ODI total against England).

Thanks to the magnificent partnership of 256 runs between Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni that put India back in the game. Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravi Ashwin and Bhuvneshwar Kumar did justice to their roles and made sure they contributed in some way or the other. We reflect on the players’ performances from today’s thriller:

KL Rahul- 1/10

After KL Rahul’s knock of 199 in Tests, nothing has gone right for him. He has failed to score in crucial games in the Ranji matches as well as in this ODI series. Today, he scored a mere 5 runs and failed to connect from the very start. Credit to Chris Woakes for executing the plan made in order to dismiss him, but Rahul’s lack of intent and mental toughness is what comes off as a bigger reason for the same. Plus, you ought to bat responsibly when you have the opportunity, it was a batting pitch after all.

Shikhar Dhawan- 1.5/10

We have heard from both the Indian captains that a player like Dhawan requires time to make things count, but he doesn’t seem to find the right time yet. His form is only getting worse, and he still seems to have a problem with his footwork and reflexes. With KL Rahul and Virat Kohli getting dismissed early, he naturally had the responsibility of carrying the innings forward. With two 4s, it looked like he was about to make an effort to contribute. He was about to offer a shot towards cover, but the ball touched the inside edge and shattered the stumps. And just after the initial hits, he gave his wicket away to Chris Woakes just immediately after Virat Kohli departed.

It is high time Dhawan steps up but it looks unlikely that he’ll get the next game, and we might see Rahane replace him.

Virat Kohli – 3/10

He had a rare forgettable day with the bat and was dismissed with a single digit score. He was caught at second slip by Ben Stokes in a similar fashion as Rahul’s dismissal off a full-ish delivery by Woakes, that he misjudged as a probable yorker. Though, his decision to bring Ashwin into the attack late raised some eyebrows, giving Jadhav 5 overs was an interesting gamble which didn’t quite work, his role as captain deserves some more points, if not the batting.

He remains undefeated on Indian soil and has clinched the first series as captain. Working in tandem with Dhoni proved beneficial for him as he took some good decisions based on his predecessor’s advice.

Yuvraj Singh- 10/10

He couldn’t have asked for a better way to justify his selection. Call that a confirmation for the flight to England for the Champions Trophy. He looked in invincible form with the willow and hit all over the ground and in the process, registered his highest ever ODI score, 150 off just 127 balls. A match that looked like it had slipped for India when they were 25/3, Yuvraj Singh along with MS Dhoni smashed the bowlers and brought them back in the game. It is nostalgic for cricket fans to see them together on the crease and they both made it one of the most memorable outings ever.

Batting with a strike rate of 118.11, vintage Yuvi laid the foundation for the mammoth target India set. He built it from the scratch and provided with a sight of absolute Indian domination. To maintain a partnership, hit 21 4s and 3 6s along with stealing singles, and to score a century that came after six long years from a man who has been out of touch with ODIs since so long deserves immense praise. Vintage Yuvi’s show today is our definition for a 10/10 performance.

MS Dhoni- 10/10

Everybody had been emphasizing the return of Dhoni as a dangerous batsman since the day he gave up the responsibility of leading the Men in Blue. Now, if he can display a carnage just in his second outing after stepping down, we should be excited about what else he has in store. This was his chance to show that ‘form really is a state of mind’, and he did just that in his 134 off 122. After a slow and steady start while letting Yuvi dominate, Dhoni gradually joined him in creating a spectacle out of the bowlers. He hit 76 runs just off boundaries.

He was freely hitting the ball and looked comfortable in his 256-run partnership with Yuvraj. It was very important for him to anchor the innings alongside Yuvraj and he played sensibly when Yuvraj decided to take on a certain bowler. His running between the wickets, knack of stealing singles, and great glovework behind the wickets and beneficial inputs for bowlers and captains deserve a 10/10.

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Kedar Jadhav- 6.5/10

His ability to adapt to various situations is pretty commendable. In the 1st ODI, he had been responsible in a match-winning knock and had the role of anchoring the innings early on. Today, he came in as a pinch-hitter in the death overs and did exactly that. His flexibility has been an asset to the team so far and we expect him to continue. Captain Kohli’s gamble of giving him 5 overs didn’t quite work as he was smashed for 45 runs.

His 22 off 10 balls was a short cameo, but a good one. Batting with a strike rate of 220, he scored 18 runs just off boundaries.

Hardik Pandya- 6.5/10

Still a long way to go before he justifies the inclusion of an all rounder over a 3rd specialist seamer, but he is doing a fair job at it in the series so far. In the last match, he showed his composure while finishing the match. Today, he showed an aggressive as well as sensible 19* off 9 balls. Hardik has stuck to his reputation of a good fielder time and again, so he gets some points for a good fielding performance today.

However, his bowling was slightly more on the uneconomical side today as the English batsmen took upon him in the middle overs and he remained wicket-less.

Ravindra Jadeja- 5/10

A little dew was expected to come on later in the evening and that had become prominent in the middle overs of the England innings. The slightly damp and sticky surface provided some help for the spinners and Jadeja just can’t be held behind when he has to take wickets. He dismissed the well-set Jason Roy on 82 before he went on to convert it into a big one.

He gets the brownie points for being economical, but he did drop a sitter and couldn’t save the ball on a lot of occasions. He gets a point for his hard hitting during the death overs of the Indian innings, though.

Ravichandran Ashwin- 7/10

Trust the man to provide you with breakthroughs when the team is wicket-less for a while. Ravi Ashwin was brought into the attack a little late and immediately dismissed the dangerous Joe Root who had just made his 50. He did not give Ben Stokes the opportunity to fire even once as he bowled him for just 1 run. Again, he did not give Jos Buttler the chance to settle and sent him back to pavilion in just 9 balls.

We are well aware of the danger the batsmen could possess had they stayed on crease a little longer. It would have fastened the process for England. Though he was hit for 63 runs, his 3 wickets were crucial and perhaps the turning point of the game. Since Team India had the runs and it was the wickets that were to make the difference.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar- 6/10

While seamers were proving to be expensive, Bhuvneshwar stood out and bowled decently. He stuck with an economy rate of 6.30 and was hit for 63 runs. However, as the dew started to increase, he was starting to get expensive in the death overs. Eoin Morgan had started to take on him pretty badly in the 48th over.

But everything was overshadowed after Bhuvi bowled a stunning last over, where he conceded only 6 runs. He remained the best of the fast bowlers. Though the scoreboard doesn’t do justice to his performance, he justified his selection.

Jasprit Bumrah – 5/10

His transformation as a fielder deserves one point exclusively for that. Virat opted for the more attacking option today and rather than keeping Bumrah as the first change bowler handed him the new ball. The most reliable Indian pacers in recent times in return of the trust got them an early wicket.

Towards the end, he went for a few runs as Eoin Morgan went berserk but kept his calm and showed great presence of mind in the 48th over to run the English skipper out right after he got to his hundred. That wicket was in the end the difference between winning by 15 runs and the series being 11. With 2 wickets in his name, he was quite expensive as his economy rate was 9.00 but this will only improve him as a bowler and prove to be a learning experience.