Root’s unbeaten 99 rescues England against India and forces an ODI series decider

He was stranded when Gus Atkinson pulled Prasidh Krishna to the boundary for the winning runs. England reached 235-6 with 5.5 overs to spare after bowling out India for 233 with six overs unused.

“Getting the win was the important thing,” Root said. “Conditions were difficult to bat on. Sometimes you have to scrap for it and win ugly.”

The third and last ODI in the tied series is on Sunday at Lord's.

Half-centuries by Virat Kohli (65) and Shreyas Iyer (66) propped up India's 233. But they had been 178-3.

The run chase would normally be academic. England's target was less than five an over, doable with singles and no unnecessary slogs. Also, India was short a bowler after allrounder Washington Sundar injured his leg batting and never fielded.

But the English, their ODI confidence not as strong as their T20's, made it hard on themselves.

Ben Duckett was out to the first delivery of the innings from Jasprit Bumrah, and Jacob Bethell fell to Krishna at 8-2.

Captain Harry Brook ramped Krishna for a six then overdid it. He was hit on the grill by Gurnoor Brar and, undaunted, Brook tried to scoop Brar again and was out for 16.

Wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan, replacing an unwell Lokesh Rahul, caught the first four England wickets.

Root read the situation and was patient. His second fifty in a row, and 67th in ODIs, came from 76 balls. It was his slowest ODI fifty since the 2019 World Cup.

“If the run rate was five or more we could have got a false shot out of him, but this kind of chase he's a master,” India captain Shubman Gill said.

Jos Buttler dispatched Axar Patel over long-on and was bowled trying to swat Patel again, on 17 at 125-5, restoring hope for India.

But Will Jacks supported Root and they produced a chanceless stand of 72 until Jacks gave his wicket to Brar at 197-6.

Root showed frustration but tailender Gus Atkinson calmed him with a six in Bumrah's last over that cleared the fine leg boundary and just missed a seated steward. Bumrah responded with a bouncer off Atkinson’s helmet but finished with just the wicket from his first ball. Atkinson scored 23 of the last 38 runs and Root hugged him at the end despite missing out on a 21st ODI hundred. His 133-ball 99 included nine boundaries.

“He turns up when you need him the most,” Brook said of Root.

Sharma and Kohli cross 8,000 runs

Gill lost the toss again but gave his team a fast start.

Then the old firm of Rohit Sharma and Kohli combined for 60, taking them past 8,000 international runs as a pair across all formats since 2010. Sharma, dropped on 5, also passed Inzamam-ul-Haq for seventh on the all-time ODI scorers list, before he was out for 26.

Kohli got a run-a-ball fifty — his 132nd in ODIs — with a driven four. But when he was out for 65 off 66 balls top-edging Jofra Archer to deep third, it triggered a collapse.

Iyer hit a 71-ball 66 but couldn't shepherd the tail and Archer and Atkinson claimed three wickets each and Saqib Mahmood two.

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