Under pressure with questions over form and mounting retirement speculations, skipper <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/rohits-sparkling-ton-guides-india-to-four-wicket-win-over-england-seal-series-2-0-23479999" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Rohit Sharma</a> silenced it all with a vintage 32nd century, firing India to a dominant four-wicket series-clinching victory over England in the second ODI here on Sunday.
Jadeja claims 3-35
Opting to bat on a belter, England were bowled out for 304 in 49.5 overs with left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja (3-35) continuing his stranglehold over the visitors. The 37-year-old Indian skipper made the chase a lopsided affair, returning to his World Cup 2023 best with impeccable timing and effortless strokeplay en route to his 90-ball 119 &mdash; his century No 32 in ODIs that came just in time ahead of the Champions Trophy in less than two weeks.
His 90-ball masterclass, studded with seven sixes and 12 fours, set the tone as India cruised to the target in 44.3 overs to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead going into the final ODI in Ahmedabad on Wednesday. Shubman Gill also made a fluent 60 off 52 balls (9x4, 1x6), but it felt overshadowed in comparison to Rohit in their solid opening partnership of 136 runs &mdash; their sixth century-plus stand together.
Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/photo/ind-vs-eng-2nd-odi-rohit-sharma-surpasses-chris-gayle-for-second-highest-sixes-in-odis-104075/1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">IND vs ENG 2nd ODI: Rohit Sharma surpasses Chris Gayle for...</a>
Kohli goes early
Back after missing out the Nagpur ODI because of a swollen knee, star batter Virat Kohli (5) fell cheaply edging a Adil Rashid leg-break. Rohit then had a fruitful 70-run stand with Shreyas Iyer (44) before he was dismissed off a full toss with Rashid taking a fine backward running catch. Iyer soon departed following a run-out, while KL Rahul (10) and Hardik Pandya (10) also fell cheaply.
But there was hardly any run-rate pressure and Axar Patel (41 not out) held his ground as he along with Ravindra Jadeja (11 not out) completed the formalities with 33 balls to spare. Rohit&rsquo;s knock also saw him surpass (10,987) <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/indiranagar-ka-gunda-returns-watch-rahul-dravid-getting-engaged-in-an-argument-with-auto-driver-23478816" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Rahul Dravid</a>&rsquo;s 10,889 runs to enter the Top-10 ODI run-scorers&rsquo; list. Earlier, on a belter, Jadeja&rsquo;s crucial breakthroughs came against the run of play as he dismissed an aggressive Ben Duckett (65 off 56 balls) and a well-set Joe Root (69 off 72 balls), preventing England from building on their strong start.
Banton called up as cover for Bethell&nbsp;
England on Sunday called up batter Tom Banton as a cover for injured all-rounder Jacob Bethell for third ODI against India at Ahmedabad. Bethell, who scored a half-century and took a wicket in England&rsquo;s four-wicket defeat in the first ODI at Nagpur, had sustained a left hamstring injury.
Brief scores
England 304 all out in 49.5 overs (J Root 69, B Duckett 65, L Livingstone 41, J Buttler 34, H Brook 31; R Jadeja 3-35) lost to India 308-6 in 44.3 overs (R Sharma 119, S Gill 60, S Iyer 44, A Patel 41*; J Overton 2-27) by four wickets
50 No. of ODIs Rohit Sharma has led India in. He guided the team to victory on 36 occasions, lost 12, while one match each ended in a tie and a no result
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India skipper returns to form with blazing 119 off just 90 balls as hosts comfortably chase 305-run target, beating England by four wickets to seal three-match 

Rohit Sharma silences retirement speculations by smashing 32nd century against England in Cuttack

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India skipper returns to form with blazing 119 off just 90 balls as hosts comfortably chase 305-run target, beating England by four wickets to seal three-match ODI series 2-0

Rohit Sharma silences retirement speculations by smashing 32nd century against England in Cuttack

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Home / Sports / Cricket / Article / Rohit Sharma silences retirement speculations by smashing 32nd century against England in Cuttack

Rohit Sharma silences retirement speculations by smashing 32nd century against England in Cuttack

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