Preview: England vs India, 3rd ODI

What

3rd ODI of the five-match series between India and England

When

August 30, 2014

Where

Trent Bridge, Nottingham

The Teams

India

Finally! A win - a word that was devoid of the Indian dressing room since Lord’s last month. A word that can now be kept in their playing kits as they move to Nottingham for the third ODI. The bat raise, the fist pump and an electric energy that looked missing on the field were all back in one day. Suresh Raina had vowed to get his energy and exuberance to the ODI outfit after the Test lull and he indeed walked the talk. A game-changing century set the tone for the Indian innings and the bowlers complimented the show with some disciplined bowling. All this looks like a familiar script doesn’t it? Remember Lord’s? If the ODI at Cardiff was important, the third ODI is doubly important for India. Over the years India have earned a reputation of ‘not finishing off games from winning positions’ and ‘failing to seal a series after an early lead’ and when India step on the field at Trent Bridge, they would want to put all those talks to rest. England are on the backfoot, and it is time that India pushed them against the wall and don’t make them feel like home. As far as problems are concerned, the form of Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli continues to be a worry. Dhawan has failed to add the promised firepower at the top and so has Kohli who has had a disastrous England tour so far. With a win, radical changes in the playing eleven look uncertain but MS Dhoni would want the men he backs to fire come Saturday.

England

Captain Alastair Cook in the post match presentation accepted his side did not play well at all. True. They let go of two positions of advantage; once while bowling and next during their run chase. For starters, they let India get to a 300 plus score after having them two down for 19. The bowling was all over the place but credit to Suresh Raina for making them look ordinary. Chris Jordan had a horrendous outing with the ball and bat and England might think of replacing him with another quick in the ranks. Next, when England walked out to bat, they stamped their authority in the first ten overs with a half-century stand. Alex Hales and Alastair Cook almost looked like helping England cross the line but failed to capitalise on the early advantage. What followed was a dismal batting display and England need to buck up especially after both teams losing an ODI to rain. Like India, they too would have memories of Lord’s but for a different reason. They turned the tide completely after giving India an advantage in the Test series and would be looking to repeat their heroics in the rest of the ODIs.

Key Players

India

Much has been spoken about Ajinkya Rahane and his quest to conquer the middle-order. Rahane has looked confident in the series so far and is amongst the few bright spots in the otherwise sorry tour of England. At Cardiff too, Rahane looked impressive stitching up a crucial partnership with Rohit Sharma after the side was tottering at 19/2. Rahane has shown glimpses of his batting prowess, got off to good starts looking solid but has failed to convert them into big scores. It is time that Rahane begins to stamp his authority and make a statement that he well and truly belongs in this Indian middle-order. Time to score and score big for Ajinkya Rahane.

England

The England batting is a cause of concern. Joe Root was a revelation in Tests and Root remains to be one of the key players to watch out for in coloured clothing as well. Still early stages in the series wherein both teams are just one ODI old but England need to get their act together before it is too late. If Alex Hales, Alastair Cook and Ian Bell do their job well, Root can be the perfect foil in the middle order, holding together the crux of the England batting. If Root gets going, he might well turn up to be India’s ‘root’ cause for failure.

Stat Overview

1. Average first innings score at Trent Bridge:

Overall - 242

Since 2000- 236

2. Average second innings score at Trent Bridge:

Overall- 207

Since 2000- 206

3. Result summary at Trent Bridge:

Matches
Mts
Won by side batting 1st
Won by side batting 2nd
Tied
NR
Overall
37
16
20
1
0
Since 2000
16
7
9
0
0

4. Head-to-head:

Matches
Played
Ind won
Eng won
Tied
NR
Overall
88
48
35
2
3
In England
35
13
18
1
3
At Trent Bridge
2
1
1
0
0

5. Last meeting between both sides at Trent Bridge:

Brief scores: Sep 01, 2004 – India 170, England 171/3. England won by 7 wickets.

6. Form guide (most recent listed first):

India: Won, Abandoned, No Result, Won, Won

England: Lost, Abandoned, Lost, Lost, Won


Wkts
Avg
RPO
Best
Pace
175
30.25
5.02
6-31
Spin
34
47.58
4.77
3-24

The Squads

India: M.S. Dhoni (C & WK), Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Sanju Samson, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Stuart Binny, Dhawal Kulkarni, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Ajinkya Rahane, Karn Sharma, Mohit Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav.

England (3rd ODI): Alastair Cook (C), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Gary Ballance, Ian Bell, Jos Buttler (WK), Steven Finn, Harry Gurney, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, , Eoin Morgan, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, James Tredwell, Chris Woakes.