Watch the highlights of India vs England 2nd ODI 1984 - England tour of India 5-match one-day international series of the 2nd ODI match played between England and India at Barabati Stadium, Cuttack in 27th December 1984.
Mike Gatting, Vic Marks and Paul Downton stars as England registered another remarkable win against India by virtue of a superior scoring rate, despite a openers Ravi Shastri's century - Kris Srikkanth's 99 and go up 2-0 lead in the second ODI.
Match Stats :
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India scored 252-5 in 49 overs with top scorer by Ravi Shastri struck 102 off 142-balls - which was his 2nd ODI hundred & his first century against England in ODIs - including 6-fours & a six.
Kris Srikkanth scored 99 off 111-balls - who fell one-run short of his maiden century - including 4-fours & 3-sixes and Dilip Vengsarkar hit 23 off 27-balls included 3-fours.
England best bowler by Vic Marks picked up 3-wickets and Mike Gatting took 2-wickets.
England scored 241-6 in 46 overs with top scorer by Mike Gatting struck 59 off 86-balls including 4-fours.
Vic Marks cracked a 44 off 40-balls including 4-fours, Paul Downtown hit 44 off 41-balls included 3-fours.
Allan Lamb scored 28 off 36-balls including 2-fours, David Gower hit 21 off 30-balls included two boundaries and Graeme Fowler 15.
India best bowler by Roger Binny took 2-wickets and one for Manoj Prabhakar - Ashok Patel.
This match reported by Michael Carey (Third Party Reference from The Daily Telegraph)
ENGLAND achieved another remarkable victory when they defeated India by virtue of a superior scoring rate in their one-day international in Cuttack today, quickly accepting the option to go off for bad light when they had made 241 for six.
Though they were still 12 short of overhauling India's 252 for five, made from 49 overs, they still had three overs in hand, and their lynx-eyed seventh-wicket pair, Paul Downton and Richard Ellison, took the offer that was open to them once the game had gone beyond its scheduled finishing hour of 5.15 p.m.
Twenty runs off two overs from Binny and Amarnath had eased England ahead of the asking rate for the first time, completing a somewhat bizarre day in which they had always been struggling to stay in contention, partly because of a certain loss of efficiency which may not have been unconnected with their lack of match practice for almost a week.
Bizarre it certainly was; first at the start when the game seemed about to be settled by a splendid opening partnership of 188 by Srikkanth and Shastri after India had been put in, then later when England coped with their task in the worst light I have seen for a match at this level.
Only the fact that this is being written by torchlight on the boundary edge helps to convince me that it actually happened.
Unaware of result
Many spectators in a crowd of 25,000 must have left the ground unaware of the result as Downton and Ellison trooped off largely, as the theatricals say, to the sound of their own foot-steps.
Many among the crowd lit bonfires in the grandstands and set off thunderflashes. If they had come round with the treacle toffee as well, the illusion that this was Bonfire Night in England would have been complete - the light was of similar quality.
The day's other ironies were that no-one who played as well as Srikkanth - cruelly but justifiably lbw on 99 and Shastri deserved to be on the losing side.
But although six chances of varying difficulty contributed to England's problems at that stage, the avalanche that should have followed such a start was never permitted and England must have sensed that on a slow but true pitch and with a large outfield, five an over was not beyond them.
So it proved, but only thanks to the composure of Marks and Downton, and Ellison after Gatting, Gower and Lamb had all perished trying to maintain the tempo at a point when they needed two substantial innings to win the match by orthodox means.
After Gower had won the toss. England discovered the pitch held nothing for their bowlers, contrary to its reputation. Thus not only was there no margin for error, but also the need to make the most of every semblance of a chance.
Not much was offered at first by two batsmen of complementary style but after Shastri has escaped a difficult stumping off Edmonds, a series of other near things, usually involving Srikkanth allowed the partnership to become India's biggest ever in one-day cricket.
Amid all this Gatting had Srikkanth palpably leg before when he shuffled across to an outswinger having played marvellously well, facing 112 balls. Appropriately the name of the umpire who gave this decision was Ghosh.
Both sensed that no heroics were needed, only the need to pick up the singles which were often turned into two by swift running. The occasional boundary, as driven by Downton or swept by Marks, was a luxury and they looked very secure in adding 58 from the next nine overs.
At that point, Marks, having just run two to third man, narrowly failed to repeat the feat from the next ball and although Binny's throw to the wicket-keeper was wide, he still managed to win the verdict.
Clouds had been gathering all afternoon and when Ghai returned in his sky-blue patka it must have been a welcome clue as to where the bowling was coming from for Downton and Ellison, but an offer to go off for the light had already been turned down since England were still behind the rate.
It was not much easier for the fielding side and after the seventh-wicket pair had produced the required acceleration, Cowdrey appeared with the news that England were at last ahead and that was that. Shastri was named Man of the Match.
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