ENG VS IND - 2nd ODI, India tour of England, 2018

We have a decider then, much like we did in the T20Is. England were dominant today and have roared back in style. It shall be interesting to see how India react to this defeat in terms of team changes and tactics. The hosts definitely have the momentum but knowing India, we could be in for a humdinger at Headingley. Do join us for that one. Until then, this is Hariprasad Sadanandan signing off on behalf of my mates Akshay Maanay, Nikhil Jadhav, MS Ramakrishnan, Sagar Chawla and our scorer Mukesh Gowda. Cheers!

Root, Man of the Match: (On getting back to form) I've always felt good this summer in practice, have done the right things and tried not to over-confuse things. Thankfully, it came off well today. (On England's problem of plenty forcing him into a hole) It's a good problem to have, isn't it? The way we have played is excellent over the last few years and it's nice to contribute. Important thing is that we are playing well and guys in front of me are doing well. It's been fabulous to be a part of this time. Throughout this game, we set it up nicely, David at the end and Morgan, also the start we got. We bowled well, even if we got the better of the conditions but it was outstanding. We were ruthless and that's what you need to be against a team like India. You've seen that we learnt from our mistakes in the T20I series and we've done that today as well. He (Kuldeep) did take wickets but we tried to ensure that he didn't just bowl at us. Tried to rotate strike. It's important in ODI cricket to stay on top and see that no one bowler is allowed to dominate in his 10 overs.

Morgan: I thought we bounced back really well, similar to the T20I series. Learned from the first game and improved. Challenges against spin on a similar surface, if not a tougher one. Joe was excellent and the boys upfront were good too. The bowlers put on a clinical performance as well. Well, it worked out (the decision to bat). It's my home ground and it's good that it paid off. I would have done it on any other game. (On Root's class on tough pitches) The way he accumulates an innings and sets up the backbone of our innings. He's the glue of our batting. (On Willey's cameo) His batting has progressed this summer and it has had an effect on his bowling as well. His approach with the ball against top batsmen early on was impressive as well. Hopefully it (the decider) should be (a cracker). It's a ground we enjoy playing at, we get great support there. Hopefully we can produce a performance closer to today's and hopefully it turns out to be a great game of cricket.

(2/2) (On MS' innings) This thing comes up whenever he (Dhoni) isn't able to play the way he wants. People just wait to jump on him. When it works, they call him the best finisher and if it doesn't, they jump on him. Today was a bad day for all of us, not just him. He is experienced and the idea was to take it deep. You don't want to lose by 150-160 runs. (On bouncing back from defeats on this tour) Yes, the series is really well poised. Even after Cardiff, we remained calm and bounced back. We expect a team like England to bounce back.

Kohli: (1/2) (On the loss) I think we started off well with the bat, it was a really good wicket to play on throughout the course of the game. Did slow up in the second half but when we lost wickets early, that's where it hurt us a bit. You need wickets in hand during such chases, so when you lose early wickets, it's tough to recover. Wicket got slower but credit to their bowlers for executing their plans. These are games where you test the character of the guys. Siddarth is new and Umesh is coming back after a while. We expect them to do the job, obviously Bumrah and Bhuvi have done it for long but it's nice to test the character of the guys. Important for the guys to bounce back. Crucial to back the guys ahead. We've played good cricket so far, today was just a bad day. Those three wickets early on played a massive part. Both Moeen and Rashid sensed the opportunity, they are good bowlers and created pressure. If we hadn't lost early wickets, we might have been able to attack them more.

Time for the presentations.

Biggest wins for England vs India (by runs):
202 Lord's, 1975
114 Oval, 1982
104 Rosebowl, 2007
86 Lord's, 2018

Many felt Morgan erred at the toss, especially after the hiding at Trent Bridge but England had read the pitch right. Root's masterclass was the cornerstone of their total that saw a vital contribution from the skipper himself and a blistering fifty from Willey whose knock took England from a respectable total to a highly competitive one at that. India's death bowling was disastrous with a plethora of full tosses that got punished and eventually, they leaked far too many. Still, considering India's batting credentials, it wasn't wrong to expect a close game but the visitors' batsmen never really came to the party. So, that sets up for the decider at Headingley.

18:53 Local Time: A damp squib in the end at the Mecca of Cricket. The last 15-20 overs has to be among the most bizarre phases ever witnessed in an international game. That said, England were totally clinical in their performance to level the series. After a steady start, India's chase got dented with the lose of their openers and Rahul in quick succession. From then, a lot depended on Kohli who tried to repair the damage with Raina before falling to Moeen. The southpaw too fell to the mounting pressure and the game was virtually over there itself. Dhoni played a strange knock that never had any intent in it from ball one and he never went for his shots even after Pandya departed. In the end, he fell and so did the others after him, but not before painfully completing the 50 overs quota. England's spinners were brilliant, so was Plunkett on a surface that did slow down in the second half but even then, India's approach towards the latter stages in the chase remains incredible.

Willey to Chahal, out Caught by Stokes!! The misery is over. Final ball of the innings and Chahal goes for a slog. No power in it and Stokes at long-on takes a dolly. Huge roar from the crowd as soon as he took it. England have hammered India here at Lord's by 86 runs! Chahal c Stokes b Willey 12(12) [4s-2]

Willey to Chahal, THATS OUT!! Caught!!

Willey to Chahal, FOUR, outside edge but no slip in hand and it races to the fence. Full and angling across Chahal who goes for the flashy drive. First slip would have gobbled it, had there been one

Willey to Chahal, wide, sprayed well down the leg-side, Chahal misses the flick

Willey to Chahal, 2 runs, the short ball and Chahal is up for it. Muscles the pull over mid-wicket, didn't middle it well but got it over the infield

Willey to Chahal, no run, very full and outside off, Chahal is happy driving, finds mid-off

Willey to Chahal, no run, another full ball, Chahal drives off the front foot to cover

Willey to Chahal, 2 runs, full and wide, Chahal drives uppishly through point. Sweeper gets across with a slide to save a couple

Plunkett to Kuldeep Yadav, no run, solid back foot defence, gets right behind the line and blocks it well

Plunkett to Kuldeep Yadav, no run, pitched up and well outside off, nicely blocked off the front foot

Plunkett to Kuldeep Yadav, no run, full and angling into the pads, Kuldeep wrists it towards mid-on