India v England 3rd ODI- England Player Ratings

England finally salvaged some pride as they defeated the Men in Blue in the 3rd and the final ODI in Kolkata by 5 runs to finish the series 2-1. India has been the better side in the series but the Brits finally had something to smile as they clinched a nail-biting thriller at a packed Eden gardens. It was a brilliant display of batsmanship from both the teams. England scored a competitive 321 in their 50 overs. There were contributions from top to bottom but no one went on to achieve that three figure mark.

India was brilliant in the run-chase even after being 5 down for less than 200. Hardik Panya and Kedar Jadhav stitched together a terrific hundred run partnership to bring India back into the contest. Jadhav almost snatched victory from the jaws of defeat but eventually held out in the deep in the penultimate delivery of the match. It was a crackerjack of match which will set up the T20I series in a terrifying way.

Here are the England Player ratings for the match

1. Jason Roy- 7/10

The charismatic right-hander played a terrific innings top of the order but yet again failed to capitalise on his wonderful start and was castled by Ravindra Jadeja at the score of 65. He played in his own free-flowing style and played the Indian bowlers with disdain. Though he was beaten quite a few times in the first few overs but he kept his calm and defied the Indian bowlers with authority.

He smashed 10 fours and a solitary six during his innings of 65 of 56 balls. His straight six of Ravindra Jadeja was the shot of the day but at Jaddu had the last laugh at the end of the day.

2. Sam Billings- 5/10

Sam Billings who came in for the injured Alex Hales started off well with his opening partner Jason Roy but gave away his wicket just when the duo was about to complete their century partnership. He was very lucky in the initial few overs where he was consistently beaten outside the off stump by the Indian pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hardik Pandya. Billings made his way to a sedate 35 according to his standards which came in 58 balls. He struck 5 boundaries during his innings.

His downfall came when he unleashed the reverse sweep. Though he connected the very ball well but he was held out in the point region by Jasprit Bumrah. It was a crucial 98 runs opening partnership between the opening duo according to the context of the game when the ball was moving and seaming so much.

3. Jonny Bairstow- 7/10

Jonny Bairstow made a comeback in the ODI squad after Joe Root was left out due to a niggle. He made full use of his opportunity and stroked his way to a fluent 56 of 64 balls which laid the foundation for a big English total. He struck Ravindra Jadeja for a terrific six and Ashwin wasn’t spared either. He shared an 84 runs partnership with Eoin Morgan for the 3rd wicket.

Bairstow struck five boundaries and a solitary six during his half-century. He got one life after Jasprit Bumrah overstepped when he was held out in the 3rd man region. He was eventually dismissed by Hardik Pandya with the score at 237/5.

4. Eoin Morgan- 6/10

The English captain started off from where he left in the Cuttack ODI. Though he couldn’t go on to make the big one as in Cuttack but his crucial innings of 43 of 44 balls were crucial in turning the table in England’s favour. He struck 3 big sixes and 2 fours during his innings which entertained the Kolkata crowd.

He came into the crease with the score at 110/2 and build a solid partnership with Jonny Bairstow to lay a strong foundation for Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali. He was eventually dismissed by Hardik Pandya with a short delivery. He attempted a pull but was held in the fine leg by Jasprit Bumrah.

5. Ben Stokes- 9/10

Stokes has been the standout player for the Brits on the tour so far and it was evident yet another time as the southpaw shone with both bat and the ball and was instrumental in giving the visitors their first victory of the tour. He stroked his way to a whirlwind 57 of 39 balls which contained 4 fours and two hits over the fence. He was simply magnificent with his strokeplay and took England to a competitive total of 321.

He was brilliant with the ball as well as he finished with impressive figures of 3/63 in his allotted 10 overs. The most prized scalp was that of the rival captain Virat Kohli who has been in the form of his life. He also castled Hardik Panya after the latter had scored a half-century. He ended his spell with the wicket of Ravichandran Ashwin.

6. Jos Buttler- 4/10

The wicket-keeper batsman started off well with a beautiful boundary was couldn’t carry on as he was dismissed after scoring 11 of 15 balls. He was dismissed by Hardik Pandya when Buttler failed to keep an outside the off stump delivery to ground and held out at the point region. Buttler took three good catches while keeping and the catch of Virat Kohli was critical in England’s win.

7. Moeen Ali- 2/10

The left-hander had a pretty poor outing in the final ODI at Kolkata where he only managed two of 5 balls and yet again failed to control a short delivery and was hold out in the covers. Though he didn’t go for plenty with the ball in hand but he was wicketless and finished with unimpressive figures of 0/41 in 8 overs.

8. Chris Woakes- 7/10

Chris Woakes had a terrific outing in the final encounter where he shone with both bat and the ball and helped England pull a dramatic victory in the last over. Coming late in the batting order Woakes smashed 19 balls 34 which included 4 boundaries and a big six. His innings gave the visitors the late impetus which propelled them to a score of 321.

Though he was pretty expensive with the ball in hand, he managed to bowl a terrific last four balls which gave England a nail-biting victory. 16 runs were required of the last over and Kedar Jadhav smashed the pacer for a six and a four in the first two balls of the over. India was clear favourites from thereon but Woakes held his nerve and bowled a terrific last few balls which sealed the deal for the visitors.

9. Liam Plunkett- 3/10

Plunkett was harmless with the ball and though he picked up a wicket but was pretty mediocre and hardly troubled the Indian batsmen on a pitch which had enough assistance for the pacers. He finished his allotted 10 overs with figures of 1/65.

10. David Willey- 2/10

The left-hander left the ground after bowling only two overs after sustaining an injury but before leaving the ground he dismissed Ajinkya Rahane with a beauty of an inswinger.

11. Jake Ball- 6/10

The tall fast bowler was pretty impressive with the ball and troubled the Indian batsman on many occasions. He beat the bat several times and finally got his reward in the 6th over when KL Rahul mistimed a pull shot and top edged straight to the wicket-keeper. It was a pretty important wicket on the context of the game which reduced the hosts to 37/2.

Hiss 2nd wicket was the big one of former captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. In a bid to up, the ante Dhoni attempted a big shot and edged it straight to Jos Buttler behind the stumps. Ball eventually finished with impressive figures of 2/57 in his allotted 10 overs.