England came back in impressive style to defeat India Defeated by four wickets in the second ODI at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff to level the three-match series 1–1. Chasing a modest target of 234 runs, the host team patiently scored an unbeaten 99 runs. Joe RootWho once again showed why he remains one of the best ODI batsmen of his generation. Although India attacked early and kept taking wickets at regular intervals, Root’s calm presence ensured England crossed the finish line with 35 balls to spare.
Earlier in the day, India were all out for 233 in 44 overs despite half-centuries from all the batsmen. Virat Kohli And Shreyas Iyer. The leadership of England’s pace attack is making a comeback jofra archerRoot kept the visitors under constant pressure before completing the job with the bat to set up the series decider at Lord’s.
After early setbacks, Joe Root leads England’s chase
England’s chase got off to the worst possible start Jasprit Bumrah rejected ben duckett On the very first ball of the innings. jacob bethel However, it also failed to make an impact harry brook’s The aggressive approach once again backfired Gurnoor Brar Removed the England captain, leaving the hosts struggling at 53/3.
When England were under pressure, Root came in and immediately brought stability to the innings. He withstood the pressure, rotated the strike brilliantly and slowly rebuilt the target. Sam Curran Earlier, he played a valuable supporting role by scoring 26 runs. will jacks Contributed a patient 30, which helped England recover from the early collapse.
India threatened to make another comeback after dismissing Curran, jos buttler And Jack later, but Root never allowed the required run rate to increase. Gus Atkinson Then he played an important unbeaten inning of 23 runs and made England win by forming an unbroken partnership with Root. Root remained unbeaten on 99, missed the century by a narrow margin but played another match-winning innings for his team. Brar was India’s most successful bowler with two wickets, while Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Akshar Patel And Shivam Dubey Took one wicket each.
Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer shine before England fight for the ball
After losing the toss, India made a positive start through the captain Shubman Gill Earlier, Atkinson had dismissed him for 31 runs. Rohit Sharma Struggled to find flow throughout his innings and was eventually out for 26 after consuming 47 balls. After this Kohli took command with another excellent performance. The experienced batsman looked in complete control as he hit brilliant boundaries all around the ground as he brought up his 78th ODI half-century. He made an important partnership of 67 runs with Iyer, who batted with confidence and scored 66 runs to keep India towards a competitive score.
However, England completely changed the momentum during the death overs through Archer. The fast bowler first dismissed Kohli for 65 runs and then derailed India’s innings by dismissing Axar and Dubey in quick succession. Saqib Mahmood And Atkinson took important wickets as India’s lower order failed to provide adequate support.
Bumrah entertained at the end of the innings with an unbeaten 20, but India were eventually all out for 233 with six overs remaining. Archer performed brilliantly with figures of 3/47, while Atkinson also took three wickets, helping England restrict the visitors to a low score. The result means the three-match ODI series is now completely tied at 1-1, with both teams going into the final ODI at Lord’s knowing that the winner will claim the series.
Also read: Jaden Lennox shines, New Zealand beats West Indies in the third ODI
Here’s how fans reacted:
England made a spectacular comeback with a four-wicket win and leveled the three-match ODI series 1-1.#ENGvIND #Cricket #jroot pic.twitter.com/FZZIvCRQr8
– CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) 17 July 2026
Yes boys! : :
A win to keep the series alive 👊 pic.twitter.com/jyO1ezkYxv
– England Cricket (@englandcricket) 16 July 2026
routes that are special
– Kevin Pietersen🦏 (@KP24) 16 July 2026
Joe Root is one opponent you can’t help but admire.
The way he sets up the game and then ends it with such ease is amazing to watch. pure class.
– Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) 16 July 2026
Despite missing his 62nd century by just 1 run, Joe Root is celebrating the victory and praising Gus Atkinson. 🥹❤️ pic.twitter.com/NGN22POIQp
– Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) 16 July 2026
Joe Root 99* and England win…!!!!
They have leveled the series 1-1 with one match remaining in the series, it is going to be a blockbuster at Lord’s. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/oizvO4SBob
– Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) 16 July 2026
🚨Joe Root created ODI history🚨
Joe Root became the first England batsman to remain unbeaten on 99 runs in a successful run chase in international cricket. 🤯#ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/yv2Tt0gwCf
-Rana Ahmed. (@ahmadrana056) 17 July 2026
2014 (The Oval, 2014 Test)
2014 (Leeds, 2014 ODI)
2018 (Lord’s, 2018 ODI)
2021 (Chennai, 2021 Test)
2021 (Nottingham, 2021 Test)
2026 (Cardiff, 2026 ODI)*Root now has 6 POM awards against India
(Most by any England player) pic.twitter.com/glc4NNKlrQ– 𝑺𝒉𝒆𝒃𝒂𝒔 (@Shebas_10dulkar) 16 July 2026
99* [133] – Special knock from Joe Root vs India. : :
– Root led England to a 4-wicket win over India in the second ODI in Cardiff. : : pic.twitter.com/BbPIM62Rlp
– Maina Singh (@Maina_Singhx77) 16 July 2026
Joe Root, take a bow! 🙇🙇️🩵
What a sensational winning innings!! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/23rkusvLR– Ishita❤️ (@ishi_178) 16 July 2026
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