MORGAN MISERY
Skipper’s ton is not enough as another series slips away
IT SAYS everything about the dizzying modern one-day world that England should score 350 and now 366 and still end up 2-0 down and nursing yet another series defeat in India.
This second ODI was an extraordinary match, albeit one weighted too heavily in favour of the bat, of 747 runs, three centuries and 19 sixes. But it finished, like so many matches on this chastening tour, in victory for India.
That was particularly cruel on Eoin Morgan who, with the pressure on his captaincy at its most intense, returned to form with a brilliant 102 as England came close to overhauling India’s 381 for six.
Yet it was not quite enough as Morgan was agonisingly run out backing up with 28 needed off 10 balls, just when it looked as though he would lead his side, together with Liam Plunkett, to one of their greatest one-day victories.
‘We have an incredible amount of belief in the changing room and we felt we could chase it down,’ said Morgan. ‘And in the end we came close, even though I didn’t think we batted that well.’
Instead this was a triumph for 35-year-old Yuvraj Singh, who has overcome lung cancer and then a three-year exile from the India team to return with a sublime 150 in prolific partnership with another golden oldie, MS Dhoni.
This was a one- day game that had everything bar penetrative bowling. There was even proof that Virat Kohli is human after all as England dismissed him in single figures for the first time this winter and India crashed to 25 for three.
But just as Kohli and Kedar Jadhav added 200 in Pune on Sunday to rescue India from 62 for four, so Yuvraj and Dhoni — combined age 70 — added 256 to put this series out of England’s reach.
It left them with the unsolved problem of how on earth they can be effective with the ball in these conditions as their attack, bar Chris Woakes, were flogged all over Cuttack in front of another raucous full house.
The old warrior Yuvraj has lost weight and was clearly facing his last chance to cement a regular place. And how he took it, with an extraordinary display of hitting on an exceptionally flat pitch.
This was his 14th one- day hundred 17 years after his debut, but his first for almost six years, and he was soon racing to his highest score in the format with a six off Ben Stokes to take him past his previous best of 139.
England were cannon fodder, with Plunkett, preferred to Adil Rashid, unable to exploit Yuvraj’s perceived weakness against shortpitched bowling. On a pitch where anything short sat up and begged to be hit, Yuvraj obliged.
Dhoni, relishing the role of senior professional after handing over the captaincy to Kohli, was happy to play second fiddle at first but once Yuvraj had gone he went on to show that age has far from diminished his dynamism.
Six sixes flew off his bat and not even the TV spider-cam hovering over the playing area was safe. It was struck by another monster hit as Dhoni approached his 10th one- day hundred. Cue mayhem when it finally arrived.
It did not, though, mean England were out of the match and when they had reached 162 for two at the halfway stage they were right in this contest. But whereas England dropped Rashid, who has regressed this winter, India were again heavily reliant on their main spinners, with Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja to the fore.
Joe Root fell to Ashwin after reaching his sixth half-century in consecutive matches against India this winter without converting any of them into three figures, and Jadeja dismissed Jason Roy for 82.
When Ashwin bowled Stokes and had Jos Buttler stumped off a wide England were rocking, but Morgan kept their hopes alive at a time when he needed runs more than at any stage of his international career. The captain hit five sixes and added 93 with Moeen Ali but when the pair were separated the target became a little too steep.
Plunkett hit 26 off 17 balls, but India claimed victory and the series by 15 runs. ‘If you score runs yourself but still lose there’s no satisfaction at all,’ said Morgan, who still does not feel that he has put the issue of not touring Bangladesh to bed, even though he reasserted his authority here.
‘No not at all,’ said Morgan. ‘There’s always pressure when you’re captain and it’s a privileged position to be in. People want you to perform all the time but it’s never going to happen.’ How England would love their bowlers to perform, but even though Woakes took three early wickets and four in all this was a one-paced attack without the speed or mystery to create problems for the hosts.
It is a situation that is exacerbated in India but Morgan admitted that they might look again at Stuart Broad in one-day cricket as they prepare for a Champions Trophy this summer that means so much to them.
‘It’s almost a case in white-ball cricket now of whoever bats best wins,’ added Morgan.
‘We haven’t produced our best with the bat but we’ve still pushed India close twice.’
Sadly, it has not been enough and England complete this series in Kolkata on Sunday still looking for their first one-day series win in India since 1984.
Not even this exciting England side can change that sorry statistic.