Cuttack witnessed an absolute cracker of a contest as India edged out England in a close game to wrap up the series. By the virtue of the win in the second ODI, the hosts now have an unassailable 2-0 lead, with the third ODI in Kolkata on Sunday reduced to a dead rubber. For India though, the game would be a memorable one thanks to their senior and veteran pros coming to the party.
The form displayed by veterans Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh is a source of massive optimism for India ahead of the Champions Trophy later this year. After setting England a mountain of a target of 382, spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin stepped up as they strangled the England batsmen. Nevertheless, a ton from Eoin Morgan got England close, but not over the line as the hosts won by 15 runs.
Admitting that defending wasn’t easy, Kohli said:
“We were wondering if we had a good start where we were going to end up. 25/3, scoring at four runs an over and ending up with 381 was incredible,” said Kohli. “I though 340 was par, 380 was farfetched though they got close going hard at the start and at the end. Bowling second was pretty difficult and I was wondering how it would have been had we chased this one.
“The next game will be key for us with the Champions Trophy coming up. With the little guy coming in at the end and blasting it away, it says a lot about us. Both the spinners coming off a strong Test series has been a strong point for us. The way they struck in the middle overs and pulled things back for us for useful. I think we are playing up to only 75 percent of our potential,” said Kohli.
Yuvraj Singh was named the Man of the Match for a career best score of 150 and he called this as the best knock of his career.
“Yes the domestic season helped me immensely. I have been hitting the ball well and the shots have coming out well. Yes, the lady luck is there and the blessings of my mother and mu Guruji have helped me here. Mahi and me understand the situation very well and we have played with each other for very long to understand each other as well. We were thinking of 340 but with wickets in hand ended up at 380,” said Yuvraj.
“I rate this innings as my best because I started my career as a lower order batsman but getting a chance to play long,” Yuvraj concluded.