ENG vs IND 2026: England vs India, 1st ODI – Who Said What?

India kicked off the three-match ODI series against England with a clinical six-wicket victory at Edgbaston on Tuesday, July 14. 

After restricting the hosts to 258 courtesy of a disciplined bowling performance led by Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah, the visitors overcame early setbacks in the chase through valuable contributions from Shubman Gill, Washington Sundar, and Axar Patel. 

While Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli endured disappointing outings, India’s middle order held its nerve to secure a convincing win and hand the visitors a 1-0 lead in the series.

ENG vs IND: Talking Points

1. Jasprit Bumrah marks return in style

Jasprit Bumrah couldn’t have asked for a better return to ODI cricket. The premier pacer immediately found his rhythm, troubling England’s top order with his pace, accuracy, and movement.

Bumrah dismissed England captain Harry Brook cheaply and kept the scoring rate under control throughout his spell, finishing with figures of 1/31 in nine overs at an economy of just 3.40. While the wickets column may not fully reflect his impact, Bumrah’s disciplined bowling laid the foundation for India’s impressive performance with the ball. 

2. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli fail

India would have expected their two most experienced batters to lead the chase, but Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli endured disappointing outings at Edgbaston.

Rohit was dismissed for 11 after mistiming an aggressive charge against Sam Curran, while Kohli’s milestone 300th ODI innings lasted only six deliveries as he was trapped LBW by a superb Jofra Archer delivery for five.

3. Axar Patel’s all-round brilliance steals the show

Axar Patel produced one of his finest all-round performances in ODI cricket to help India take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

The left-arm spinner played a crucial role in restricting England after Joe Root and Liam Dawson threatened to post a much bigger total. Axar dismissed Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, and Josh Tongue to finish with impressive figures of 4/62, cleaning up the tail at the perfect time.

He then delivered under pressure with the bat after India slipped to 152/4. Walking in after KL Rahul’s dismissal, Axar remained unbeaten on 57 off 52 balls to take India over the line. 

ENG vs IND: Who Said What?

Axar Patel, Player of the Match, said

“The way T20 series went, this is the perfect start for us. Very happy with the way I performed today. I had to bowl stump-to-stump and vary my pace. In the batting, we got a very good start. We just had to rotate the strike. When I went there, Washi was there. We wanted to build a partnership. We were ahead of the game.”

Harry Brook, losing captain, said

“Not ideal. We lost 5 for 20 in the middle overs. We got to a decent total in the end, it was a great effort from the lads. Losing 5 for 20 is never ideal. That partnership between Root and Dawson was great. We thought the pitch changed. It got slower and allowed them to cruise. We’ll get to Cardiff and make a decision there. We’ll come back stronger.”

Shubman Gill, winning captain, said

“When you see the lower order team finish off like that, it gives you a lot of confidence. It was more about our combination (on wanting to bowl first). We back our batting order to chase. Our bowling overs in the middle overs was decent. We were put under pressure but we bounced back by taking 5 wickets. We’ll try to see which combination gives the best depth. The condition here will be similar to South Africa. The ball was kicking off. If we can test different combinations, it’ll be great for us.”