Brief Scores: England (235/6 in 44.1 overs) beat India (233/4 in 44 overs) by four wickets in Cardiff to level the three-match ODI series 1-1.

Joe Root was out after scoring an unbeaten 99, but England cruised to a four-wicket win over India in the second ODI at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on Thursday as the hosts leveled the three-match series 1-1.

After England’s pace attack bowled out India for 233 runs in 44 overs, Root played another measured innings to guide the hosts to victory with 20 balls to spare. He became the first England batsman to finish an ODI innings unbeaten on 99 and only the 17th player overall to be stranded on that score.

India vs England, 2nd ODI: highlight | Achievement:

More importantly for England, Root made sure of the three-match series leading up to the decider at Lord’s on Sunday.

Harry Brook’s decision to bowl first proved decisive as England’s fast bowlers did not allow India to hold on for long. Jofra Archer and Gus Atkinson took three wickets each, while Saqib Mahmood took two, as the hosts shared nine of the 10 wickets that fell. India had two batsmen score half-centuries and looked well set for a strong total, before another familiar collapse left them on a total that always looked within England’s reach.

Shubman Gill set the initial pace by playing a quick inning of 31 runs in 30 balls, but at the other end, Rohit Sharma’s difficult phase continued in this format. The former skipper struggled to rotate the strike, being tied down for long periods by England’s disciplined bowling and eventually making 26 off 47 balls before attempting to sweep Jos Buttler off Will Jacks. It was another innings in which Rohit never looked settled, allowing Gill to do most of the early scoring before Virat Kohli arrived at the crease.

However, Kohli looked far more confident than in recent weeks. He drove fluently down the off side, was quick to catch any overpitched ball and handled Archer’s pace with aplomb during a fine innings of 65 from 66 balls. At the other end, Shreyas Iyer scored 66 runs in 71 balls and once again showed why he has become India’s most reliable middle-order batsman in this format. England tested him consistently with the short ball, but he responded with authority, pulling Archer for six to complete another half-century.

Their partnership put India back in control after the fall of early wickets and at 179 for four, the visitors looked set for a total of over 250. However, England took back the initiative through Archer. The fast bowler extracted extra bounce from a back-of-the-length delivery to edge Kohli and that breakthrough led to a collapse that India could not stop.

Washington Sundar took two, Axar Patel took one and Shivam Dubey was out for zero, leaving England’s lower middle order in tatters. India lost four wickets for just 15 runs in 26 balls, destroying the platform built by Kohli and Iyer. Bumrah’s unbeaten 20 took the total to 233, but it already looked 30 or 40 runs short of what India looked capable of posting by the innings break.

Archer took 3 for 47, Atkinson took 3 for 50 and Mahmood took 2 for 52 as England’s fast bowlers chased down the target with another disciplined performance.

India’s defense could not have got off to a better start. Bumrah dismissed Ben Duckett with the first ball of the innings, hitting an outside edge which Ishan Kishan accepted comfortably behind the stumps, before Prasidh Krishna dismissed Jacob Bethel with a maiden over to reduce England’s score to 11 for two.

However, those early successes brought Root to the crease sooner than England expected. The former skipper handled the pressure without changing his approach, first rebuilding with Harry Brook and then forging crucial partnerships with Will Jacks and Sam Curran. He never let the asking rate become an issue, constantly rotated the strike and capitalized on it whenever India made a mistake.

Root’s innings was not built on a barrage of boundaries. Nine fours punctuated an otherwise patient innings, with most of his runs coming through quick running and intelligent placement between the wickets. Every partnership achieved the target and every quiet phase was followed by another phase of accumulation, leaving India searching for wickets that never came.

Gus Atkinson eventually settled the match by hitting a six off Bumrah, completing the chase with 20 balls remaining and Root remaining unbeaten on 99 runs. The missed century was a statistical oddity rather than the story of the evening as England responded impressively to their defeat in the series opener and headed to Lord’s for Sunday’s decider.

For India, Kohli’s return to form and another assured innings from Iyer were encouraging signs, but Rohit’s continued struggles and Kohli’s collapse after his dismissal once again exposed the weakness of the batting order. In contrast, England were performing well with the ball and were composed in their chase, with Root once again providing the calm mind around which the innings revolved.

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