Player of the series Joe Root feels England’s white-ball team are “going in the right direction“ after securing a 27-run win over India at Lord’s on Sunday.
Harry Brook’s team won the T20I series 4-0 after overpowering India – but lost the first game of the three-match one-day international series to go 1-0 down.
Root played a starring role in the second game, ending on 99 not out to make the series 1-1 heading into Sunday’s decider at Lord’s.
The Yorkshire batter then scored a sixth successive ODI half-century (74no off 48) as England racked up a monster score of 387 for three after choosing to bat.
England openers lay solid foundations
Ben Duckett (141 off 135) and Jacob Bethell (91 off 93) laid the foundations with a fantastic opening stand of 192 for the first wicket before Jos Buttler blasted 41no off 13 balls alongside Root, who scored 249 runs in three games and was never dismissed by India.
Rohit Sharma (138 off 110) and Shubman Gill (77 off 84) got the run chase off to a flyer as India raced to 147 for one, then Virat Kohli (74 off 60) played fluently as the tourists put pressure on England’s bowling attack.
But Sam Curran held his nerve and ended with figures of four for 75 to ensure India posted 360 for seven off their 50 overs.
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Going in the right direction
Jacob Bethell (1-49), Jofra Archer (1-63) and Adil Rashid (1-64) got the other wickets, and Root was relieved to get the series win over the line, telling Sky Sports: “To bounce back from our defeat in the first ODI and beat the number one side is the most rewarding thing.
“To back up a brilliant series win in Sri Lanka with this shows we are going in the right direction in a really positive way.
“It is great to see the guys developing and learning.“
Brook proud of England team
White-ball skipper Brook had a quiet game by his own standards, scoring just 14 runs off 12 balls – and he poured praise on the opening pair, saying: “I am extremely proud.
“We fought hard, communicated well like we did in the T20s and have managed to scrape a series win against the world number one team.
“We want to set a template with the bat, and the way Ben Duckett and Jacob Bethell started with the bat was phenomenal.
“To be no wickets down after 30 overs and not look like they were taking a risk.“
India captain Gill, meanwhile, felt Buttler’s late cameo decided the game, stating: “I think we were right in the game up until the 45th over [of England’s innings].
“We gave up too many runs in the last three overs and that’s where the game went too far out from us.
“We thought if we had wickets in hand after 40 overs, we would be in the game. After the powerplay, we tried to get the required run rate down.“
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Juliette White 
SportJustSport writers 
Aidan Leo