Birmingham: Jonny Bairstow’s solid century, combined with dazzling fifties from Jason Roy and Ben Stokes gave England a crucial 31-run victory over India at Edgbaston on Sunday. India tasted its first defeat in 2019 World Cup as hosts England inch towards semi-finals.
A 109-ball 111 from Bairstow and half-centuries from Roy (57-ball 66) and Stokes (54-ball 79) helped England post 337 for 7. A five-wicket haul by Mohammed Shami put necessary speed breakers for the English batsmen.
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With Bairstow joining Roy, England raced past 100 in the 16th over, from 47 for no loss in the first 10. Both batsmen went past their half-centuries, and England seemed set for a massive score with the duo adding 160 in 22.
Chasing a big total, India needed a good start from KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma. Early loss of Rahul did not seem much of a deterrent for Team India. Rohit Sharma (109-ball 102) and Virat Kohli (76-ball 66) added 138 runs on board. But both the batsmen were dismissed at the wrong time for India.
England bowlers however bowled with a plan and never allowed the Indian middle-order to get going. There was not enough intent from MS Dhoni and Co in the last few overs as India were restricted to 306 for 5 in their 50 overs.
Overall, it was a clinical masterpiece from England. They showed that they are still alive in the tournament and they still have a chance for a semi-final spot.
What’s Next
The hosts face New Zealand next in a do-or-die match on July 3. Meanwhile, India still has got two matches to play. They will face Bangladesh on July 2 and Sri Lanka on July 6. Currently, in the second position in the points table, India will enter semi-finals if they win any one of the matches.
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