Rohit Sharma’s flying kiss to teary-eyed Ritika steals the show after Lord’s ton – WATCH
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Rohit Sharma’s flying kiss to teary-eyed Ritika steals the show after Lord’s ton – WATCH
While India lost the series, one thing is for sure: neither Rohit nor Kohli will be going anywhere until the 2027 World Cup in South Africa.
Rohit Sharma celebrates Lord’s century with flying kiss to Ritika
Rohit Sharma answered mounting criticism in trademark fashion, producing a magnificent century under immense pressure, but his valiant effort could not stop India from slipping to a 27-run defeat against England in the third ODI at Lord’s on Sunday, as the hosts clinched the three-match series 2-1.
Chasing a daunting target of 388, India finished on 360/7 despite Rohit’s brilliant 138, while Shubman Gill contributed 77 and Virat Kohli added 74. Earlier, Ben Duckett starred with a career-best 142 and Jacob Bethell struck 91 to power England to 387/3.
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Jos Buttler’s explosive unbeaten 41 off just 13 balls provided England with the late surge they needed, helping the hosts collect 82 runs in the final five overs and set up the series-winning total.
The series decider came at a crucial moment for Rohit, who had been under intense scrutiny following reports and speculation over his future in international cricket. With questions surrounding his place in the team, the veteran opener walked out at Lord’s determined to lead India’s chase and remind everyone of his class.
Also Read | Gautam Gambhir beams as Rohit Sharma slams maiden Lord’s century, silences critics in England ODI series decider
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Although his outstanding knock was not enough to secure victory, Rohit’s innings stood out as one of his finest under pressure, reaffirming his ability to deliver on the biggest stage despite the growing debate over his future.
He didn’t raise his bat after completing his 34th ODI hundred — the first by an Indian batter at Lord’s. Nor did he acknowledge the standing ovation from the suits at the Members’ Balcony after a 110-ball knock stitched with heart, hurt, and sweat.
Ritika Sajdeh was visibly emotional in the stands as Rohit Sharma completed his century, wiping away tears after days of intense speculation surrounding her husband’s future. Rohit acknowledged her support with a heartfelt flying kiss towards the stands, capping off an emotional celebration that quickly became one of the defining moments of the match.
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Watch the video here…
It was the last time he played an ODI in England, and people would talk for the longest time about how an ageing star showed resolve when the powers that be made him feel unwanted.
A stand of 147 with skipper Gill and 113 with his old pal Kohli raised visions of an improbable victory.
For Rohit, there were 17 boundaries and five sixes — three off Josh Tongue — a pull, one down the ground, and one wide off long-on. There was a pulled six off Sam Curran (4/75 in 10 overs), who proved to be the bowling hero for England.
Curran’s pace off deliveries at the death accounted for Ishan
Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and Kohli in a space of seven deliveries to end any hopes that India would have harboured.Curran got able support from left-arm spinner Jacob Bethell (1/49 in 7 overs), a luxury India never had by playing a lone spinner in Axar Patel.
While India lost the series, one thing is for sure: neither Rohit nor Kohli will be going anywhere until the 2027 World Cup in South Africa.
On the day, Gambhir and Gill’s planning went haywire and playing four pacers with combined experience of 51 games backfired badly.
Jasprit Bumrah’s absence due to an impact injury on his left knee was a blow for India.
The four-pronged pace attack comprising Prasidh Krishna (2/69 in 10 overs), Arshdeep Singh (0/72 in 10 overs), Prince Yadav (1/79 on 10 overs) and Gurnoor Brar (0/97 in 10 overs), lacked both skill and experience against an in-form batting line-up.
Duckett and Bethell were fantastic in terms of planning and execution. The batting powerplay of first 10 overs yielded 58 runs but the wheels came off between overs 11 to 30 when they literally ran the bowlers ragged.
With head coach Gambhir using Kuldeep Yadav in only 38 games out of a total 103 matches (across three formats) since his appointment in 2024, the lack of a second spinner save Axar Patel (0/61 in 10 overs) did hurt India.
While Duckett hit 18 boundaries in all apart from a six, Bethell, who looked comparatively more fluent at the onset, hit 11 fours and a six, before being holed out in the deep off Prasidh Krishna’s bowling.
Joe Root (74 no off 48 balls) continued his golden run of form with another half-century — his third in three games — to take the total past 350-run mark. Jos Buttler (41 no off 13 balls) also joined in the fun as Brar got a harsh lesson in international cricket, going for almost 100 runs.
At the onset, it didn’t help matters that rookie Prince, bowling up the famous Lord’s slope, struggled with his length as Bethell pulled him for a six over deep mid-wicket and then slapped him in the gap between deep mid-wicket and mid-on for a boundary.
The rusty Arshdeep Singh didn’t hold his line while Prasidh Krishna, despite beating Bethell’s bat on a number of occasions, also bowled the odd loose delivery.
However, Bethell did well to complete his half-century off 51 balls while England reached the team total of 100 by the 16th over. By that time, Indian bowlers have already conceded 15 boundaries and the lines were horribly wrong, allowing the opening pair to nicely settle into a rhythm. In all, they conceded 42 boundaries and six sixes.
It also established the fact that all the other Indian pacers look good when the brilliant Bumrah is at work at one end and that effectiveness vanishes once he is absent. One saw that in the T20Is and now in ODIs too. (With PTI inputs)
first published: Jul 20, 2026 06:00 am
