England openers Ben Duckett and Jacob Bethell made history in the third ODI against India on Sunday (July 19), with their record-breaking 192-run partnership. It was the highest partnership for England against India in ODIs,
breaking the record of Eoin Morgan and Joe Root’s 186* at Leeds in 2018.
Duckett and Bethell also became the first batting pair to score more than 150 runs for the first wicket at Lord’s. The previous highest opening partnership here was worth 135 runs between Geoffrey Boycott & Peter Willey against West Indies in 1980. This was also England’s first 100-plus-run opening stand in ODIs at the iconic venue since Andrew Strauss and Steven Davies’ 113 versus Pakistan in September 2010.
While Duckett played the anchor’s role with a composed 81, Bethell was the more aggressive of the two, striking 91 off 93 balls with a mix of elegant drives, pulls, and lofted shots.
After a cautious beginning, where Bethell was lucky to survive a few close-shaves, both batters settled quickly, rotating the strike effectively and capitalising on India’s inconsistent bowling.
India’s four-pronged pace attack failed to maintain disciplined lines and lengths, conceding several loose deliveries and wides, which allowed the English pair to build momentum without too many boundaries.
With Jasprit Bumrah missing from the 11 due to a knee injury and India being adamant in their decision not to pick left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, it seemed to leave them too short on wicket-taking in the middle overs.
Kuldeep’s absence could be attributed to the lack of a genuine pace all-rounder in the team in Hardik Pandya’s absence. Axar Patel was the only spinner in the 11 and he looked toothless against two left-handers.
Bethell made the most of his chances and looked set for a century before falling nine runs short, caught by Rohit Sharma at deep square leg off one pull shot too many against Prasidh Krishna. Their stand left England in a dominant position after 30 overs and India under immense pressure to wrest control back.
