Joe Root hits another century as England thrash India to secure one-day series win

England have completed a set. With a simple eight-wicket win over India at Headingley, they have now won their most recent ODI series against India, Australia, New Zealand, West Indies, South Africa, Ireland, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka across the last two years. Indeed every one of their last eight series have ended in victory.

If those are statistics befitting of the world’s No1 team, this was a calm, clinical performance – an outclassing in every aspect – that matched it. A waspish performance with the ball and in the field saw India bowled out for 256, which a rapid start meant was never enough. Joe Root, the man of the series and on his homeground, brought up his second successive century with the winning runs, a slapped pull through midwicket. He celebrated the hundred – his 13th in ODIs, to move out on his own beyond Marcus Trescothick as England’s leading ODI century-maker – with a bat-drop celebration. Eoin Morgan was not far behind, making 88 in a steady stand of 186 to win the game with 33 balls to spare.

If that chase sounds like a breeze, it was. It had taken India 12 overs to reach 40, but as Jonny Bairstow blitzed seven fours in his first 12 balls, England got there in 25 deliveries. Bairstow got carried away, though, and laced Thakur to midwicket. By the end of the powerplay, England had 78 but had lost James Vince too. Vince started well but was dozily run out, blowing a golden chance – with Jason Roy and Alex Hales injured, and Dawid Malan with the Lions – to break into the team. The likelihood is that another chance will not come along before the World Cup.

That was a rare bright spot for India in the field. India started poorly with the ball, and were awful in the field throughout. To misfields on the fence and in the ring, and overthrows, they were able to add a drop when MS Dhoni shelled Root down the legside on 59. When Root had 69, a stumping from Dhoni was ruled out because Yuzvendra Chahal – a wrist-spinner who walks to the crease – had overstepped. Root duly pumped the free hit for four. It is worth noting at this juncture that England today passed 4,000 deliveries without conceding a free hit in ODIs. There was still time for Morgan to be dropped at mid-on on 85.

By the time those mistakes came, it was too late. Root and Morgan have put on a century stand in their last three ODI innings together, which is a handy quality to have in your numbers three and four. They hardly took a risk, simply rotating the strike and picking gaps. Had the chase been a little longer, both would have made centuries.

The problems England had against Kuldeep Yadav at Trent Bridge five days ago seemed a distant memory; the more access they have had to his bowling, the easier they have found it to pick – and play – him. By the third game, Chahal was a greater threat and Kuldeep’s returns diminished: six wickets, three wickets, wicketless.

If their brilliant, boundary-breaking batsmen have underpinned their rise to No1 in the world and polished off this win, it was their bowlers that set it up. Mark Wood set the tone up top, finding swing and two maidens in his first three overs on a dry, slow pitch. David Willey was the beneficiary as Rohit Sharma, tied down, teed off and found Wood at deep square-leg.

The bowling was excellent, but this was one of those days when almost every single one of England’s batsmen made a mighty sharp stop or save in the field. Ben Stokes led the way, brilliantly running out the ominously in-form Shikhar Dhawan with a bullet direct hit from square-leg off Moeen Ali. Moeen was parsimonious but it was his partner in crime, Adil Rashid, who did the damage, picking up three wickets. Dinesh Karthik dragged on, then Rashid picked up two in an over, including the prized scalp of Virat Kohli.

Kohli was left baffled when a swift leg-break pitched on leg then took out his off-stump as he looked to play through the on-side. It was a magical ball – it takes one of them to get a magical batsman – and one that would turn the course of India’s innings. Kohli, gone for 71, would have been shaking his head five balls later when Suresh Raina fell into the trap set for him, turning to leg-slip.

Wood’s first five-over spell had gone wicketless for 14 in a powerplay that brought just 32 runs, but he got his reward when he returned for his final five. He immediately took the sixth wicket, Hardik Pandya caught behind, leaving the onus solely on Dhoni, who either looks out of puff, out of form or out of ideas, to push India up to a big score. Dhoni was not able to do that, falling to Willey for a painstaking 42 off 66, then Wood completed his 10 overs for 30.

Only 17 from the penultimate over, bowled by Stokes powered India past 250. That over contained two sixes from Shardul Thakur, the first of them India’s first for 637 balls in the series. Willey’s last was much better, with five yorkers nailed and just five runs conceded, then a low full toss ending the innings with Bhuvneshwar Kumar caught at cow. It just never looked enough.