England secured a thrilling four-wicket win over India in the second ODI on Thursday in Cardiff to comprehensively level the three-match series 1-1. Joe Root stood out for the hosts, finishing unbeaten on 99 and guiding the side to victory in 44.1 overs. However, Root missed out on his 21st ODI century. Earlier, India, after being asked to bat, were bowled out for 233 in 44 overs, with their middle-order suffering a dramatic collapse. But, major knocks from Shreyas Iyer (66) and Virat Kohli (65) gave the side something to defend. Later, speaking on India's defeat, captain Shubman Gill highlighted the middle-order collapse as the key reason behind the team's defeat.
"We thought 300-310 would be a good total after 25 overs when we were in a good position, but we lost too many wickets in the middle overs," Gill said.
"Our tailenders are not the best batsmen, but we expected a bit more from the lower middle-order and we were not able to capitalise on their starts," Gill stated.
Gill also touched upon Washington Sundar's injury, highlighting his importance both as a batter and a bowler.
"He (Washington Sundar) is a key part of our team. He got injured while he was batting, taking that run to mid-off. Maybe it would have played a part, squeezing in the pressure. We had to bowl our main bowlers throughout the innings. I don't think it would have made a really big difference because the ball was doing for the fast bowlers, but when you lose a key player, you have to change your strategy, so in terms of that, there was a bit of momentum lost for us," Gill said.
The third and final ODI between both teams will be held on July 19 at Lord's.