India have won the three-game ODI series against England despite a stunning knock from Sam Curran as the hosts won the decider by seven runs in Pune on Sunday.
Batting at eight, Curran entered the fray with England chasing India’s 329 at 6-168 in the 26th over, before blasting 95no from 83 balls to almost get his side over the line in a remarkable knock.
England needed 19 runs off the final two overs with two wickets in hand but Curran couldn’t finish the job as Hardik Pandya and T Natarajan kept their cool.
Earlier, India had amassed 329 led by Rishabh Pant’s 78 from 62 balls, while Shikhar Dhawan (67) and Hardik (64) made good contributions.
Mark Wood was England’s best with the ball, taking an economical 3-34 from seven overs, while Adil Rashid claimed two wickets.
England’s chase started poorly with openers Jason Roy (1) and Jonny Bairstow (14) both going cheaply to leave them 2-28.
Dawid Malan made a half-century but fell on 50 while Ben Stokes and Liam Livingstone both got starts but lost their wickets in the 30s.
However, Curran offered the tourists hope and an unlikely path to victory but it wasn’t to be, as India won the series 2-1.
England’s stand-in skipper Jos Buttler said: “Unbelievable innings from Sam Curran… We’re disappointed, we came here and we wanted to win, but there have been great learnings throughout the process.
“The white-ball leg has been fantastic and close and today was no different. I think playing cricket in India is always a learning experience. Guys will go away as better cricketers.
“It was an amazing effort from Curran to take a lot of ownership and take most of the strike. I know Sam will be disappointed but he showed a lot of character and we are all proud of him.”
India captain Virat Kohli added: “England will not throw in the towel at any stage, Sam played well, but we kept taking wickets to put enough pressure on them.
“The mindset shifted in the last couple of overs. Hardik and Nattu were brilliant to finish it off.”
