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If India’s victories by four wickets in the opening two ODIs against England did not accurately reflect the disparity between the teams, the 142-run win in the third match at the Narendra Modi Stadium certainly did. This result also confirmed the series conclusion at 3-0 in favor of India. A significant contribution came from Shubman Gill, who scored 112 runs in his 50th ODI, marking his seventh century and helping India amass a total of 356 runs. Adil Rashid's performance, taking 4 wickets for 64 runs, which stands as his career-best figures in India, prevented India from achieving an even larger score. The final margin could have been worse for England had Gus Atkinson not scored a quick 38 runs off just 19 balls. However, this only underscored England’s disappointing batting display, as Atkinson ended up being co-top scorer alongside Tom Banton, who recently joined the squad as an injury replacement for Jacob Bethell. Thus, England concluded this limited-overs tour with seven losses from eight matches and a disappointing record of 16 defeats in 23 ODIs since the 2023 World Cup.

The English team began their chase for the 357-run target in a promising manner, reaching 126 for 2 by the end of the 18th over. Yet again, the middle order collapsed, ultimately reducing the team to 175 for 8 by the 31st over. With Varun Chakravarthy struggling with a calf issue and Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami resting, bowlers Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, and Arshdeep Singh exploited the situation. Both squads arrived in Ahmedabad aiming to refine their strategies in this final ODI before the Champions Trophy; England, in particular, had more adjustments to make. India opted for three changes, which indicated an experimental approach, while Jos Buttler chose to bowl first after England batted in their prior games in Nagpur and Cuttack. Gill embraced the chance to bat first this time. Following scores of 87 and 60 in the earlier fixtures, he was consistent throughout his innings, breaking a “slump” of 14 matches without a century.

During his innings, Gill received support from Virat Kohli, who added 52 runs, and Shreyas Iyer, who scored a quick 78 off 64 balls, leading to partnerships of 116 and 104 runs, respectively. KL Rahul contributed a brisk 40 runs off 29 balls, along with valuable contributions from lower-order batsmen, ensuring India posted their highest score at this ground and their joint third-highest against England. It could be argued that England's best moment on that day came when Mark Wood dismissed Rohit Sharma with his very first ball. After recently achieving his 32nd ODI century, Rohit faced only two deliveries, with Wood’s delivery angling into the off stump, leading to a catch by a diving Phil Salt. Gill and Kohli began their innings aggressively, maintaining momentum until Rashid stepped in during the 15th over. The leg-spinner’s dismissal of Kohli, who had scored his 123rd fifty-plus ODI score off just 50 balls, foreshadowed the challenges that lay ahead for England.

Shreyas made his entrance and quickly found his rhythm, forming a century partnership with Gill that took just 85 balls, equally shared between them. By that time, Gill had elegantly driven Wood through midwicket to reach his hundred off 95 balls. Following this achievement, Gill became even more expansive, hitting Rashid for a six down the ground, but he was soon bowled by the same bowler while trying to perform a clumsy swipe at a straight delivery. Rashid struck again when Shreyas, after securing a half-century in just 43 balls, carelessly nudged a delivery down the leg side, leading to another excellent catch by Salt. Hardik Pandya was dismissed by a beautifully executed leg-spin, though he had previously hit Rashid for consecutive sixes. After expanding his arms for a swing, the all-rounder played conservatively to navigate the 41st over but fell victim to a slower ball that sharply turned from a middle-and-leg line, going past his bat and hitting the middle-and-off stumps. Ultimately, India ended their innings, losing three wickets for a mere three runs in the last seven deliveries.

That winning feeling heading into a big #ChampionsTrophy campaign pic.twitter.com/21FXXppyAS

— ICC (@ICC) February 12, 2025

For what it's worth, England maintained the necessary run rate of 7.14 for a considerable portion of their chase. However, the frequent loss of wickets became problematic, with the last eight batsmen contributing only 88 runs. Ben Duckett, who had exited the field in the first innings due to a thigh injury, quickly found his form, smashing four fours against both Harshit Rana and Arshdeep. The boundaries off Rana came in consecutive balls, but the left-arm bowler had the final say, deceiving Duckett with a knuckleball that was skied to Rohit at mid-off, ending Duckett's innings at 34. A brisk start of 60 runs in 6.2 overs had established a solid foundation for England, though Salt’s dismissal after hitting an Arshdeep slower delivery to backward point meant that neither opener lasted through the first ten overs. Joe Root and Tom Banton then joined forces, with Banton making his first international appearance in over a year, filling in for Jamie Overton.

Recently leading the run charts in ILT20 for MI Emirates, Banton displayed his remarkable batting skills, hitting reverse-swept sixes off Washington and Axar Patel. He experienced a couple of fortunate escapes, first avoiding a stumping after charging at Washington while edging a delivery on 7, and then narrowly surviving a run-out at 24 when Axar, fielding at point, mishandled an overarm throw from only five yards away when an underarm toss would have sufficed.

Kuldeep played a crucial role in dismissing Banton, who was caught behind after misjudging a delivery, marking the first of England's final five recognized batsmen to go for just 48 runs. Axar clean bowled Root with a yorker, and soon after, Rana made a comeback to dismiss both Buttler and Harry Brook, who were still at the crease. Liam Livingstone’s difficult innings ended after just 23 balls when he misread a delivery from Washington, leading to Pandya destroying Rashid's off stump with a poorly timed pull shot from the batter. Although Wood and Atkinson managed to hit a few aggressive shots, they were mere sparks in the overwhelming defeat England faced, ultimately succumbing with an entire 94 balls remaining in their innings. This situation presents a significant challenge for head coach Brendon McCullum as he seeks to motivate his team ahead of their Champions Trophy opener against Australia on February 22 in Pakistan. In contrast, India is set to commence their campaign against Bangladesh in Dubai two days earlier, emerging in a much stronger position and demonstrating why they are the clear favorites to secure their second ICC trophy within a year.