After a convincing victory in the first One-Day International (ODI), India will aim to seal the three-match series with another win when they face hosts England in the second ODI at Lord’s on Saturday.
In the first match, a maiden fifer for chinaman Kuldeep Yadav (6/25) followed by Rohit Sharma's unbeaten 137-run knock sealed a comfortable eight-wicket victory for India.
The visitors dominated England, the Number 1 ODI side, in all departments of the game and took a crucial 1-0 lead in the series.
The batting department seemed settled with opener Shikhar Dhawan coming back to form. The Delhi batsman scored 40 runs off 27 balls, which included eight boundaries.
Skipper Virat Kohli also showed why he is called one of the best batsmen in the format. India's routine chasers Kohli and his in-form deputy Rohit collaborated for a 167-run stand to break the hopes of English bowers.
But the middle and lower-order is yet to be tested. However, the way English bowlers were playing, it seemed they had an uphill task to reach India's middle and lower order.
The only concern for India is the pacers. Umesh, Hardik Pandya, debutant Siddharth Kaul were not effective as they leaked runs when spinners, Kuldeep, Yuzvendra Chahal put pressure on the English batsmen.
England, on the other hand, have many things to work on. Their batsmen failed to click in unison. If the top-order clicks then the middle and lower order fail. Joe Root continued his poor form in the first match and skipper Eoin Morgan failed to utilise the start given by Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow.
The bowling department also seemed to be struggling as no bowlers were able to put pressure on Indian bstamen. Mark Wood, David Willy, experienced Liam Plunkett and Ben stokes need to click this time in order for England to take the series to the third match.
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