It is three in a row now! India beat England by 16 runs (D/L method) in the third One Day International match being played at Green Park, Kanpur. India, now leads the seven-match series by 3-0.

Chasing an inadequate total of 240, India made a shaky start with Gautam Gambhir (14) and Suresh Raina (1) getting out early. India was 34 for the loss of two wickets when Rohit Sharma came into bat. Virender Sehwag at the other end was looking in a smart touch. Sehwag (68) and Rohit Sharma (28) together played some good shots and led the team to a firm position. They cemented a partnership of 73 runs. India lost the wickets of Rohit Sharma and Sehwag in quick succession. The hero of the last two matches Yuvraj Singh scored 38 off 31 balls before being sent back by Andrew Flintoff. Mahendra Singh Dhoni (29) and Yusuf Pathan (12) were on the crease when the field umpires called the match off due to poor light conditions. The decision, subsequently declared India as the winner by 16 runs in the “Duckworth-Lewis Method”.

Earlier, the English batsmen failed to capitalize on a good start and were bundled out for 240. The new opening combination of Ravi Bopara (60) and Ian Bell (46) gave England the perfect start in the series with a 79-run stand but the middle-order could not continue the momentum going and gave away a few quick wickets. As being witnessed so far in the tournament, Indian pace attack failed to fire in the initial phase of the England innings. Ishant Sharma, who made a comeback after missing the first two matches, conceded 60 runs for his two wickets. The spinners did a fantastic job with Harbhajan Singh picking up three for 31 and reaching his 200 international wickets in the process. Harbhajan Singh was named Man of the Match for his stupendous effort with the bowling.