The Indian men’s cricket team recently registered a historic One Day International (ODI) series victory over England. The Rohit Sharma-led men defeated England by 5 wickets and with 47 balls to spare, in the third and final game of the 3-match ODI series.

Sharma, the Indian skipper, again won the toss at the Old Trafford in Manchester and elected to field first. England batters posted a decent total of 259 runs. Jos Buttler, England’s newest white-ball skipper played a vital knock of 60 runs in 80 deliveries, with 3 boundaries and a couple of sixes.

On the other hand, Hardik Pandya was the highest wicket-taker for India. He picked 4 wickets while conceding merely 24 runs in 7 overs of his spell. Pandya’s bouncers were a thing to watch yesterday (July 17). Especially his thrilling battle against Liam Livingstone didn’t let the Indian fans down. Yuzvendra Chahal captured 3, and Mohammed Siraj too went on with certainly the two most crucial dismissals of the match – Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root.

In reply, India couldn’t start well as the men in blue lost their top three batters within the powerplay. It was Rishabh Pant and Pandya’s partnership that turned the tables around. Both the batters built a match-winning partnership of 133 runs in 115 deliveries. Pant attained the first century of his ODI career. He scored an unbeaten knock of 125 runs in 113 deliveries and aided India to seal the ODI series away from home, by 2 – 1.

Pant smashed 16 fours and 2 sixes during his time on the crease. Furthermore, Pandya played a vital knock of 71 runs in just 55 deliveries, with 10 elegant boundaries. In the end, after Pandya’s dismissal, Pant built a quick, one-sided 50-run stand with Ravindra Jadeja to finish it all. Pant, after the game, was awarded the ‘Player of the Match’ award for his contribution.

When India were being handed the trophies and awards, Pant was seen giving a champagne bottle to the former India head coach Ravi Shastri. Shastri is currently in England to fulfill his commentary commitments. The video of the incident has gone viral over social media platforms. In an image, the former Indian skipper Virat Kohli too can be seen offering a champagne bottle to Shastri.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by CricFit | Cricket News Update (@cricfit)

Virat Kohli offering Ravi Shastri the champagne bottle after the win. pic.twitter.com/vchQCOH8Zv

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 17, 2022

‘I enjoy playing in England’ – Pant

Besides, Pant, in the post-match presentation, opened up regarding several aspects of his innings. The 24-year-old said: “Hopefully I will remember my first ODI century for the rest of my life. But when I was in there, I was just focusing on one ball at a time. (Coming in at 25 for 2) When a team is under pressure and you bat like that, that’s what you aspire to do. (Quick end to the chase) I enjoy playing in England and will do whatever I can do to keep enjoying my cricket.”

The left-hand wicketkeeper-batter added: “The more cricket you play, the more experience you get. (Bowling) It was the best pitch to bat on, so credit to our bowlers for keeping them to 260. Not only this game, they have bowled well through the series. Not only this series either, they have been excellent all year.”

Written By Prachi Pisal

Get the latest cricket news here and like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more such updates.