Rohit Sharma answered his critics with a magnificent century, but India went down by 27 runs to England in the third ODI at Lord's on Sunday. The defeat handed England the three-match series 2-1. Chasing 388, India finished on 360/7 despite Rohit's brilliance.
Rohit top-scored with 138 off 110 balls, hitting 17 fours and five sixes. Shubman Gill made 77, while Virat Kohli contributed 74. Their efforts, however, were not enough to overhaul England's imposing total.
Walking in under pressure amid speculation over his ODI future, Rohit produced a vintage innings. He registered his 34th ODI hundred and became the first Indian batter to score an ODI century at Lord's. He added 147 runs with Gill and 113 with Kohli to keep India's chase alive.
England wrestled back control through Sam Curran at the death. The left-arm seamer removed Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and Kohli in the space of seven deliveries to finish with 4/75. Jacob Bethell also chipped in with a wicket and kept things tight in the middle overs.
Earlier, England piled up 387/5 after opting to bat first. Ben Duckett smashed a career-best 142, while Jacob Bethell struck an impressive 91. Joe Root remained unbeaten on 74 before Jos Buttler blasted 41 off just 13 balls.
Duckett dominated the Indian attack with 18 boundaries and a six. Bethell matched him stroke for stroke before falling to Prasidh Krishna. England collected 82 runs in the final five overs to put the game beyond India's reach.
India missed the services of injured Jasprit Bumrah throughout the innings. Prasidh returned 2/69, while Prince Yadav claimed one wicket. Arshdeep Singh and Gurnoor Brar went wicketless, with Brar conceding 97 runs.
Axar Patel was India's only specialist spinner and failed to trouble the England batters. The lack of a second frontline spinner hurt India as England dictated terms in the middle overs. The inexperienced pace attack also struggled without Bumrah's presence.
Despite the series defeat, Rohit's century was the biggest positive for India. The veteran opener responded to the pressure with an innings of character and class. It was a timely reminder of his enduring value in the ODI format.
