Rohit Sharma hits century as India surge to ODI series victory over England

England will enter the Champions Trophy this month on the back of four consecutive one-day international series defeats, their latest confirmed by the relentless blade of Rohit Sharma.

Questions about Sharma’s future have piled up in recent weeks, as would be the case for any 37-year-old out of nick. But a one-day series at home is a radically different challenge to a Test tour of Australia, and the aura of a white-ball king remains. Sharma struck a 90-ball 119, his 49th international hundred, as India hunted down a target of 305 with four wickets and 5.3 overs to spare.

Sharma, India’s captain, went big, something England’s batting lineup could only threaten to do. Each member of the visiting top six reached 26 but none went to 70, Ben Duckett and Joe Root the two half-centurions. Breaching 300 meant for a lively contest in the second half, or so we thought. Sharma found support through Shubman Gill’s 60, and while wickets tumbled near the end, Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja applied the finishing touches. India lead the series 2-0, with a kickabout at the Ahmedabad coliseum to round things off.

England lined up without Jacob Bethell, the 21-year-old having sustained a hamstring injury, unfortunate timing as the start of the Champions Trophy looms close. Somerset’s Tom Banton has been called up as cover for the series finale on Wednesday, a reward for county and franchise runs. India, meanwhile, wanted the tourists to relive the trauma of the Twenty20 series; Varun Chakravarthy made his ODI debut.

Just like the first one-dayer, England had little trouble early on. Duckett was the aggressor, brutal square of the wicket, his half-century taking just 36 balls. But the top two didn’t pass the spin test. Phil Salt and Duckett both perished with slog-sweeps gone wrong, England left on 102 for two inside the 16th. Duckett’s dismissal for 65 in Jadeja’s first over felt particularly significant. Bethell’s absence made the opener England’s only southpaw; Jadeja could settle in nicely against the righties, his eventual figures an immaculate three for 35 from 10.

Ravindra Jadeja celebrates with Harshit Rana after taking the wicket of England’s Ben Duckett, caught by Hardik Pandya. Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters

Root and Harry Brook brought restraint, acknowledging that you’ve got to eat your veggies in this format if you want dessert at the death. The pair injected calm with a stand of 66 before Gill leapt brilliantly to dismiss Brook for 31, a pure connection missing off Harshit Rana’s slower ball. Another fifty stand would follow between Root and Jos Buttler, but the latter departed for 34.

Even Root, England’s most successful hundred-maker in this format, failed to advance. He was typically excellent against spin, reverse-sweeping away. The attempted drive over long-off was therefore a surprise, Virat Kohli holding on off Jadeja’s bowling to end the knock on 69.

Jamie Overton has admitted to being a work in progress against spin, so an unsuccessful launch against Jadeja’s final ball of the day was questionable when five overs of the innings remained, with the quicks still to come. Liam Livingstone was crucial in delivering 300, blasting a couple of sixes off Rana and finding support in Adil Rashid, who took three consecutive fours off Mohammed Shami.

Sharma began the response with a flurry of sixes, whipping Gus Atkinson and taking a couple off Saqib Mahmood. The opener was only disrupted by electrical troubles; a malfunctioning floodlight tower prompted a half-hour break during the seventh over. When play resumed Sharma survived a marginal lbw call to Mark Wood, England’s review showing the ball clipping the bails. The next ball saw Wood whipped over the leg side for six, the feeling building: this would have to be Sharma’s night.

Gill was a classy support act at the other end as the pair managed Adil Rashid with ease, the century stand brought up inside 14 overs. Two delicious bits of bowling brought England back. Overton thundered in a 87mph yorker to take Gill’s off stump before Rashid floated up a leg-spinner, enticing Kohli to push outside off and edge to the keeper.

Sharma’s hundred, appropriately, came with another thump over the ropes and off his 76th ball, Rashid the victim. There wasn’t much of a celebration. That’ll happen when you’ve done this umpteen times. The opener wasn’t to bat through, mistiming a Livingstone full toss in the 30th over, with Rashid taking a tumbling catch at midwicket.

England should have had Patel run out two overs later but Salt failed to collect a Mahmood throw from backward point. In the end it was Shreyas Iyer who fell after miscommunication in the middle, run out for 44 at the non-striker’s end with 47 runs still required.

KL Rahul perished, too, bounced out by Overton with 30 left and five wickets to go. Hardik Pandya nailed a pull shot straight to Overton in the deep with 19 required, Atkinson provided some relief on a particularly expensive night for him. Maybe, just maybe, there was still a game here? Patel’s unbeaten 41 said no.