Hello and welcome to CricketCountry’s live cricket scores and updates of the second match of the three-ODI series between India and England. Having lost the first game at Pune despite scoring 350, England face a do-or-die task at Cuttack in order to no stay alive in the series. England have been a vastly improved limited-overs side under Eoin Morgan but defeating a Virat Kohli-inspired India at their backyard is a different proposition. Kohli relishes captaincy and seems to get better with every passing day. India were 63 for 4 in the 12th over when a 200-run stand between Kohli and Kedar Jadhav came to their rescue. Both scored brisk hundreds.
Despite the firepower in the batting armoury, England have struggled in their bowling department to contain the run-flow. Even for India, despite the famous Pune win, there are major concerns. The opening has been a matter of concern. The side is heavily reliant on Kohli, who has redefined consistency. But to be a dominant force, even Kohli is aware that a side will have to be more than a one-man army. “Kohli will win more games than me,” Dhoni had told during a press conference in Pune ahead of the series opener. The prophecy of the former captain will stand true when the side performs more as a unit.
Full cricket scorecard: India vs England, 2nd ODI
Finally, cricket returns to Cuttack. The crowd trouble during the South Africa T20 in 2015 is still fresh in minds. Even this time around, the hotel saga made unwanted news. It will be relatively cooler at Cuttack with mercury expected to drop to 15°C. Dew will play a major role and hence toss again will be important. India have certain selection issues. Umesh Yadav was expensive in the last game, as was Ravichandran Ashwin. With Amit Mishra waiting in the wings, the issue gets graver.
Ever since World Cup 2015, England have maintained an excellent run-rate, the highest among all teams. How they contain the Indian batsmen will hold key. All in all, this promises to be another exciting contest.
Squads:
India: Virat Kohli (c), Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Shikhar Dhawan, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Kedar Jadhav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Amit Mishra, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Ajinkya Rahane, Lokesh Rahul, Umesh Yadav, Yuvraj Singh
England: Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler (wk), Liam Dawson, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes
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