World Cup: Clinical India thrash England to maintain unbeaten run, close in on semis
India found themselves in uncharted territory in the ongoing World Cup after being asked to bat by England captain Jos Buttler in Lucknow
The Men in Blue were off to a poor start, getting reduced to 40/3 with Virat Kohli dismissed for a nine-ball duck
The in-form Rohit Sharma came to India’s rescue with a fighting 87 on a two-paced Ekana wicket, building important partnerships with KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav along the way
Suryakumar Yadav narrowly missed out on a half-century, but was otherwise impressive in his second World Cup appearance
Bowling all-rounder David Willey was the pick of the English bowlers with figures of 3/45, helping his side restrict India to 229/9
India needed early wickets to defend the modest total and Jasprit Bumrah delivered just that by removing Dawid Malan and Joe Root in successive deliveries
Mohammed Shami would remove Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow later in the powerplay and eventually finish the pick of the bowlers with 4/22 after his 5/54 against New Zealand
Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja would help maintain the pressure created by Bumrah and Shami as England lost wickets in a heap to get bowled out for 129
India have regained the top spot on the World Cup points table with six wins in as many outings and are practically through to the semi-finals even if not officially confirmed