England captain Jos Buttler said a score of 330-350 would have been defendable after they suffered a four-wicket loss against India in the second ODI at the Barabati Stadium, Cuttack on Sunday. With this win, India also took an impregnable lead of 2-0 in the three-match series. The visitors posted 304 runs on the board after Buttler decided to bat first but India was able to chase down the total with 33 balls to spare.
Ben Duckett and Joe Root scored 65 and 69 runs respectively but they could not convert their score into a big one. Harry Brook (31) and Jos Buttler (34) also got off to starts but they could not convert them into substantial scores.
On the other hand, Indian captain Rohit Sharma got back into form, scoring a majestic knock of 119 runs off just 90 balls with the help of a dozen fours and seven sixes. The veteran batter completed his 32nd ODI century off just 76 balls as he showed his class.
Shubman Gill also scored an impressive knock of 60 runs and he added 136 runs with Rohit Sharma for the opening alliance to give a perfect start to the team.
Jos Buttler said in the post-match presentation, “I thought we did a lot of things well, we got into a nice position with the bat. We needed someone to push on and get us to 350. Credit to Rohit, he batted superbly, he has been batting like this since a few years in ODI cricket. Wanted to get runs on the board, it skidded on a bit and the opposition also played well.”
He added, “We played the powerplay brilliant, we needed someone to kick on and a score around 330-350 would have been defendable. Just keep taking steps in the right direction, the results are not there but we need to keep going and be positive.”
The final and third ODI between India and England will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad on Wednesday.
