Team India produced a classy all-round display of gameplay tame England by 66 runs in the opening One-Day International at the MCA Stadium in Pune on Tuesday. After a top show with the bat by Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul and Krunal Pandya, the Indian bowlers tightened the screw on the English batsmen to go 1-0 up in the three-game series.
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Winning the toss, English skipper Eoin Morgan elected to bowl. The Indian openers were off to a cautious but steady start, as Dhawan and Rohit Sharma contributed to a 64-run opening stand before the latter fell for 28 in the 16th over to pacer Ben Stokes after being caught behind by Jos Buttler.
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Nonetheless, as Kohli joined Dhawan, the pair continued to trouble England as they posted a 105-run stand for the second wicket. As Dhawan brought up his 31st ODI half-century, it was Kohli who scored his 61st.
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But, in the 33rd over, the skipper fell for 56to pacer Mark Wood after being caught by Moeen Ali at deep mid-wicket. In came Shreyas Iyer, while at the score of 187, he departed for a mere six to the same man after being caught by substitute fielder Liam Livingstone.
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Meanwhile, ten runs later, Dhawan fell a couple short of his 18th ODI ton, as Morgan caught him off pacer Ben Stokes in the 39th over. He was also dropped on a couple of occasions. At 205, Hardik Pandya departed for just a single to the same man after edging it to Jonny Bairstow at the slip.
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Rahul and Krunal took charge, as the two contributed to a 112-run unbeaten stand to steer India past 300 and finish on a competitive total of 3175. While Rahul scored his ninth ODI half-century in the process, Krunal struck his maiden on debut.
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As for the English bowlers, six were utilised. It was Stokes who was the most effective of all and being the most economical as well.Brief scores: India 3175 (Dhawan 98, Kohli 56, Rahul 62*, Krunal 58*; Stokes 334) vs England
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As England came out to bat, the openers Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow went all guns blazing, as they contributed to a 135-run opening stand. It was during this phase when Roy scored his 18th ODI half-ton, followed by Bairstow's 14th.
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Nonetheless, in the 15th opener, debutant pacer Prasidh Krishna got rid of Roy for 46 after being caught by substitute fielder Surykumar Yadav. The break of this partnership allowed India to bounce back into the game, and England fluttered completely, despite looking well on course to chase the total down within 30 overs.
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A couple of runs later, all-rounder Stokes departed for a mere single off Krishna after being caught by substitute Shubman Gill in the 17th over. It was followed by a 32-run stand between Bairstow and Morgan before the former fell for 92 to pacer Shardul Thakur, as Kuldeep Yadav caught him.
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England struggled to get partnerships hereon. It lost Morgan for 22 at 175, as Thakur made him caught behind, while the English skipper had already been dropped by Kohli earlier.
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A run later, Buttler followed for just a couple as Thakur trapped him leg-before in the 15th over. Although Sam Billings and Moeen Ali tried to steady the ship, the Indian bowlers were too strong, getting rid of both for 18 and 30, respectively, within 38 overs.
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The incoming batsmen could hardly contribute thereon. While the Curran brothers tried to swing their willows, it was ineffective as the host completed a convincing win by 66 runs.
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Considering the Indian bowlers, five of them were utilised, with Krishna being the most effective. Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar was the most economical of all.Brief scores: India 3175 (Dhawan 98, Kohli 56, Rahul 62*, Krunal 58*; Stokes 334) beat England 251 in 42.1 overs (Bairstow 94; Krishna 454) by 66 runs.
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