England defeated India by four wickets in the second ODI at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, to level the three-match series 1-1.
Chasing 234, England suffered an early setback when Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Ben Duckett with the first ball of the innings, becoming the first Indian bowler to claim a wicket on the opening delivery of an ODI innings against England. However, Joe Root anchored the chase with a composed unbeaten 99, receiving valuable support from Sam Curran (29), Will Jacks and Gus Atkinson, who struck the winning boundary as England reached 235/6 in 44.1 overs.
For India, Bumrah, Gurnoor Brar and Axar Patel picked up two wickets each, but the bowlers could not stop Root from steering England home.
Earlier, India were bowled out for 233 in 44 overs after a dramatic middle-order collapse. Shreyas Iyer top-scored with 66, while Virat Kohli made 65 and shared a crucial partnership with Iyer after captain Shubman Gill (31) and Rohit Sharma (26) departed. India looked well-placed before losing six wickets for just 32 runs. Jasprit Bumrah’s late cameo of 20, featuring three fours and a six, helped push the total past 230.
England’s bowling attack was led by Jofra Archer and Gus Atkinson, who claimed three wickets each, while Saqib Mahmood and Sam Curran chipped in with two and one wicket respectively.
With the victory, England drew level in the series at 1-1, setting up a winner-takes-all decider at Lord’s.
