India defeated England by six wickets in the opening ODI in Edgbaston, Birmingham, on Tuesday, taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match series, thanks to Axar Patel’s strong all-around performance.

Then, Axar returned to the field to record an undefeated 57 and, together with Washington Sundar, established a match-winning partnership of 102 runs after taking four wickets to help dismiss England for 258 runs. Sundar hit his first ODI half-century and finished the game with a huge six, remaining unbeaten on 52.

England won the toss and decided to bat first, giving India a fantastic start. Even after Ben Duckett’s second Powerplay counterattack, the hosts still struggled to score against India’s disciplined pace attack. Although Duckett and Jacob Bethell put up a 61-run opening partnership, Gurnoor Brar quickly turned the game around by taking two wickets in the same over. England then slumped from 61 for no loss to 80 for five in just a few overs.

Joe Root and Liam Dawson made a spectacular comeback with a 121-run stand for the seventh wicket just when it appeared England would get a modest total. Before being dismissed, Dawson scored a strong 68, earning his first ODI half-century.

Root batted for the whole innings, scoring 76 not out. With England’s 258 total in 47. 5 overs, Axar completed the tail end in style with his amazing 4 for 62 record, taking the final four wickets.

With Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill comfortably navigating the new-ball spells of Jofra Archer and ODI debutant Josh Tongue, India’s pursuit got off to a good start. Rohit was bowled by Sam Curran for 11, after the opening partnership had reached 43. Archer caught Virat Kohli lbw for only 5 in the following over, putting India under early pressure.

India’s momentum was shifted by Gill and Shreyas Iyer’s excellent response, as they put together a faultless 101-run partnership for the third wicket. Even though he received treatment many times, Gill appeared confident and scored another elegant half-century before cramping forced him to leave the game injured at 80 runs. England saw a chance when Iyer was out for 35, and KL Rahul went for just 1.

But India’s all-round spin bowlers made sure there was no drama at the conclusion. India won thanks to Axar and Washington Sundar’s outstanding calm, which resulted in a 102-run partnership for the fifth wicket that went unbroken.

Sundar completed his unbeaten 52 and secured India’s convincing six-wicket victory with 28 balls remaining by hitting the winning runs over the ropes, which was a fitting conclusion to the game.

Brief scores:
England 258 all out in 47.5 overs (Joe Root 76, Liam Dawson 68; Axar Patel 4-62, Prasidh Krishna 2-50)
India 262/4 in 45.2 overs (Shubman Gill 80 (retd hurt), Axar Patel 57; Josh Tongue 1-50, Sam Curran 1-55)