Jadhav hits home run

Pune, January 15 

Virat Kohli and Kedar Jadhav hit centuries and combined in a 200-run stand to help India comfortably chase down a steep target of 351 against England and win the first ODI by three wickets on Sunday.

India’s chase seemed over when England reduced them to 63/4 in the 12th over but captain Kohli and local boy Jadhav turned the match on its head with the hosts reaching the target with 11 balls to spare to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

The touring side, who lost a five-match Test series 4-0 before returning home for Christmas, would have felt confident of victory after posting 350/7. Half-centuries by Jason Roy, Joe Root and Ben Stokes took England to their highest ODI total against India, who won the toss and opted to bowl first.

England lost Alex Hales early but opener Roy (73) and Root, who top-scored for his side with 78, added 69 for the second wicket to lay a solid foundation.

Roy was given out LBW on 18 off paceman Umesh Yadav but reviewed successfully to overturn the decision with replays showing the ball was missing the stumps. Stokes provided the late assault with a 40-ball knock of 62, studded with two fours and five sixes, as India bled 105 runs in the last eight overs.

Left-arm seamer David Willey gave England the ideal start with the ball by dismissing openers Lokesh Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan inside the first six overs. Yuvraj Singh, playing his first ODI in over three years, and former skipper MS Dhoni did not last long either as India were left staring at a heavy defeat. But Kohli, playing his first match as India’s full-time captain across all formats, and Jadhav took the attack to the England bowlers. Kohli was stranded on 99 for three deliveries before he danced down the pitch to hit paceman Chris Woakes for a six and bring up his 27th ODI hundred, which came in 93 balls.

Jadhav, who struggled with a cramp towards the end of his knock, guided the same bowler to third man for a boundary to bring up his second ton off 65 balls. Stokes dismissed Kohli after a 105-ball 122, studded with eight fours and five sixes. Jadhav was out after a 76-ball 120, with 12 fours and four sixes, to fast bowler Jake Ball, the most successful English bowler with three for 67.

Hardik Pandya, unbeaten on 40, and Ravichandran Ashwin (15 not out) combined in a crucial eighth-wicket stand of 38 at the end to take India home. The second match of the series will be played at Cuttack on Thursday. — Reuters

350
England’s highest total against India. The previous highest was 338, scored in Bengaluru during the 2011 World Cup.

33
Balls taken by Ben Stokes to score a fifty, the fastest by an England batsman against India. He smashed Andrew Flintoff’s record of a 35-ball fifty. 

9
Number of 350 or more totals by England. Interestingly, seven of these totals have come after the 2015 World Cup, and that too in just 34 games.

7.87
Ashwin’s economy in the match, his worst in any game in which he has bowled over five overs. He conceded 63 runs without picking a wicket.

8
Number of matches in which India have chased down targets of 300 or more since Kohli’s debut. Kohli struck hundreds on six occasions.

Winning start for skipper Virat

17
Number of centuries Kohli has struck while chasing. He has equalled Sachin Tendulkar’s record.  

Best Test player ... KOHLI.  Best ODI player ... KOHLI. Best T20 player ... KOHLI. He is from another planet #Fact  — Michael Vaughan 

Scoreboard

England 

                                       Runs Balls  4s 6s

J Roy  st Dhoni b Jadeja 73 61 12 0

A Hales run out 9 18 1 0

J Root c H Pandya b Bumrah 78 95 4 1

E Morgan c Dhoni b Pandya 28 26 2 1

J Buttler c Dhawan b Pandya 31 36 1 2

B Stokes c Yadav b Bumrah 62 40 2 5

M Ali b Yadav 28 17 3 1

C Woakes not out 9 6 1 0

D Willey not out 10 5 0 1

Extras: (b-1 lb-11 nb-4 w-6) 22

Total: (for 7 wickets, 50 overs) 350

FOW: 1-39, 2-108, 3-157, 4-220, 5-244, 6-317, 7-336  

Bowling

U Yadav 7 0 63 1

H Pandya 9 0 46 2

J. Bumrah 10 0 79 2

R Jadeja 10 0 50 1

R Ashwin 8 0 63 0

K Jadhav 4 0 23 0

Y Singh 2 0 14 0 

India 

                            Runs Balls 4s 6s

KL Rahul b Willey 8 18 1 0

S  Dhawan c Ali b Willey 1 10 0 0

V Kohli c Willey b Stokes 122 105 8 5

Yuvraj Singh c Buttler b Stokes 15 12 2 1

MS Dhoni c Willey b Ball 6 6 1 0

K Jadhav c Stokes b Ball 120 76 12 4

H Pandya not out 40 37 3 1

R Jadeja c Rashid b Ball 13 15 2 0

R Ashwin not out 15 10 0 1

Extras: (b 1, lb 4, w 11) 16

Total: (7 wickets; 48.1 overs) 356

FOW: 1-13, 2-24, 3-56, 4-63, 5-263, 6-291, 7-318   

Bowling

C Woakes 8 0 44 0

D Willey 6 0 47 2

J Ball 10 0 67 3

B Stokes 10 0 73 2

A Rashid 5 0 50 0

M Ali 6.1 0 48 0

J Root 3 0 22 0