England defeats Pakistan by 130 runs to avoid series whitewash
England avoided a series whitewash on Monday (July 18) with a comprehensive 130-run victory over Pakistan in the third and final one-day international at Edgbaston.
Chasing a mammoth 332 to win, Pakistan were bowled out for 201 in 38.2 overs. Babar Azam top-scored with 74 off 69 balls, while Imam-ul-Haq made 56 off 58 balls.
For England, David Willey took 4-35, while Reece Topley and Craig Overton picked up two wickets each.
Earlier, England were indebted to a superb century from Joe Root, who made 113 off 104 balls, and a quickfire 70 from Jonny Bairstow, as they posted 331-9 from their 50 overs.
Pakistan’s bowlers struggled to contain England’s batsmen, with Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf conceding 76 and 71 runs respectively from their 10 overs.
The victory gives England a 2-1 series win, after they lost the opening two matches by 9 wickets and 54 runs respectively.
Key moments
- England won the toss and elected to bat first.
- Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow put on a 120-run opening partnership for England.
- Root went on to make a superb century, his 16th in ODIs.
- Bairstow made a quickfire 70 off 49 balls.
- Pakistan’s bowlers struggled to contain England’s batsmen, with Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf conceding 76 and 71 runs respectively from their 10 overs.
- England posted a total of 331-9 from their 50 overs.
- Pakistan got off to a poor start in their chase, losing three wickets in the first 10 overs.
- Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq put on a 105-run partnership for Pakistan, but they were unable to keep up with the required run rate.
- Pakistan were eventually bowled out for 201 in 38.2 overs.
- David Willey was the pick of England’s bowlers, taking 4-35.
Reaction
England captain Eoin Morgan: “We’re delighted to have won the series. We knew we had to play well today, and we did that. Joe Root was magnificent, and Jonny Bairstow played very well too. We’re now looking forward to the T20I series.”
Pakistan captain Babar Azam: “We’re disappointed to have lost the series, but we played some good cricket in patches. We need to learn from our mistakes and come back stronger in the T20I series.”
England’s victory is a major boost ahead of the T20I series between the two sides, which starts on July 16.
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