India entered the fourth one-day international with England knowing that victory would earn them victory in the best-of-five series.
They seized the advantage by winning the toss in Mohali and putting England into bat, and despite some late heroics from Joe Root, England scored 257-7 on a pitch that maybe offered a little bit more to their batsmen.
The hosts were always in control of their run chase and after Rohit Sharma hit a superb knock of 83, Suresh Raina added the finishing touches to his team's innings by firing 89 runs off just 79 balls to earn India a five-wicket win.
Read Sports Mole's coverage below to see how the match unfolded.
Good morning and welcome to Sports Mole's coverage of the fourth one-day international between India and England in Mohali.
TOSS: INDIA BOWL. England captain Alastair Cook calls wrong and India win the toss and they have elected to bowl first.
There was no hesitation from India captain MS Dhoni in opting to field first and here is what he had to say to Sky Sports News immediately after seeing his opposite number make the wrong call: "The pitch has been under the cover for quite some time and there has been some fog around in the morning so there may be something for the fast bowlers."
Cook admits that he would have also decided to have bowled first: "We would clearly of liked to have bowled first with the overhead conditions and with the dampness around, but if we get through the new ball, history suggests that this is a good wicket," he said.
Team news to follow, where both sides have decided to make one alteration to their team.
India have brought in Rohit Sharma to open their innings in place of Ajinkya Rahane, while England have replaced Craig Kieswetter with Jos Buttler behind the stumps.
England need a response in Mohali if they are to keep this series alive. They were superb in the opening game but in the past two matches in Kochi and Ranchi, they have been thoroughly outplayed.
INDIA XI: Rohit Sharma, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni(w/c), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shami Ahmed, Ishant Sharma
ENGLAND XI: Alastair Cook(c), Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen, Joseph Root, Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler(w), Samit Patel, Tim Bresnan, James Tredwell, Steven Finn, Jade Dernbach
Mist had descended in Mohali early on this morning but now, the sun is out and we are ready for play. Bhuvneshwar Kumar to bowl the first ball to Alastair Cook...
There is plenty of early swing on offer for Kumar but it has resulted in him bowling two wide balls. Both Cook and Bell have also got off the mark with a single and England are away.
Shami Ahmed will partner Kumar and he opens with an optimistic lbw appeal, which is promptly followed by a wide. Bell edges down to third man for a single to complete the scoring for the over.
A maiden over for Kumar. The England batsmen won't be too perturbed as they look more intent on surviving the new ball rather than scoring at will in the early stages.
Wow, the outfield looks fast! Cook pierces the off-side with the first boundary of the innings but he plays and misses the next delivery from Ahmed.
A loud appeal from Kumar but it looks too high, and the ball runs away for a leg bye, and it is a similar story off the final ball of the over.
Cook records his second boundary with a pull over mid-wicket before following that up with an excellent cover drive. That looks to be his lot but he times a shot off his pads to make it 12 runs for the over.
Bell gets in on the act with a flick off his pads for four before recording England's fifth boundary in eight balls with a square drive.
Ishant Sharma is on for India and he concedes just a single from his opening over. Cook has 18 from 27 balls while Bell has 10 from 21 deliveries.
It isn't taking much more than a prod for the ball to race to the rope on this outfield and Cook obliges with his fifth four of the innings.
WICKET! Bell (10) c Kumar b Sharma
Bell is the first man out for England after holing out to Kumar at the third-man boundary. While England had looked comfortable, Bell had struggled and the pressure finally told.
Pietersen is the next man in but he has found it difficult to get off the mark and Sharma records a maiden over.
Kumar has done a great job at keeping things tight at the other end and a single off his pads from Cook is all that he hands England during his seventh over.
England finally bag a boundary off the bowling of Sharma with a flick off the back foot from Cook to move England past fifty.
Another tight over from Kumar, who allows just two runs off Pietersen as England reach 53-1 off their opening 15 overs.
A much-needed boundary for England as a pull from Cook races to the boundary. Five runs from the over.
Ahmed is back into the attack after a costly opening spell but he responds by conceding just a single to Pietersen off the final ball of the over.
It's time for some spin from Ashwin and after he concedes three runs from the first two balls, he comes around the wicket and that tightens up the remainder of the over.
Ahmed continues with his pace bowling at the other end and apart from one short ball that Cook dispatched for four, it is a relatively uneventful over.
Ashwin has started well but five singles from the over mean that England's run-rate continues to rise, albeit slowly.
Kumar has two overs remaining and he is back to finish his spell. He concedes just two runs from his over as Cook approaches his half century.
Pietersen has been quietly supporting Cook but he picks up his first boundary with a cracking shot down the ground. A profitable over for the tourists.
Cook brings up his fifty with a nudge to mid-wicket. The England skipper has mixed attack and defence superbly so far and he will be hoping that he can bat until the end of the innings.
England look to be getting the better of Ashwin so far with another two singles but four consecutive dot balls suggest that Ashwin still has plenty to offer.
Ravindra Jadeja is brought into the attack for India but Cook and Pietersen impose themselves with three scoring shots before Cook sweeps to the deep square leg boundary.
England are gently putting their foot on the accelerator and after driving the ball through cover, Cook scores his 12th four of the innings with a cut past point.
To give you an update of the scores, Cook has swiftly moved to 65 runs off 90 balls. Pietersen's innings has been a bit more subdued but he is still at the crease with 23 from 47. Two runs came from that last Jadeja over.
It is hard to judge what is a good score on this pitch. It was difficult early on but England have progressed with ease, although they would have hoped to have scored more runs than they have accumulated so far. Sharma allows the ball to go through his legs to gift Pietersen his second boundary.
Three runs from the over take England to 117. Pietersen's two fours from 52 balls is probably the least that he has ever scored in a one-day international innings.
Cook moves onto 70 with a pull-shot to keep England's run-rate just above four.
A couple of lofty shots from Cook looked destined to be caught but they ultimately avoided the fielder. Pietersen displayed more intent during that over with four runs and he has upped his strike-rate to just over 58.
WICKET! Cook (76) lbw b Ashwin
Ashwin continues into his eighth over but he is dispatched by Cook for four with a sweep. However, the Indian spinner has his man, but it is courtesy of a poor decision from the umpire. Cook is adjudged to be lbw but the ball pitched outside the line. A partnership of 95 comes to an abrupt end, which brings Eoin Morgan to the crease.
That was unfortunate for Cook as he had built his innings well with the intention of lasting the 50 overs. Morgan gets off the mark with two singles.
WICKET! Morgan (3) c Yuvraj b Ashwin
England need to regain their composure here. Ashwin restricts Pietersen and Morgan to just two runs which leads to Morgan trying to hit the ball down the ground, only to give the ball too much height and it falls into the grateful hands of Yuvraj Singh.
Samit Patel has been promoted up the order in an attempt to give England some impetus. However, he is watchful during his first six balls which results in a maiden over for Jadeja, who has conceded just 21 runs from his six overs.
England have taken their batting Powerplay, which has resulted in Dhoni bringing Sharma back into the attack. Sharma has been superb and he almost dismisses Pietersen with a ball that just misses the batsman's bails. Pietersen moves to 42 and Patel gets off the mark with the final ball of the over.
WICKET! Patel (1) c & b Jadeja
England are beginning to faltering alarmingly in Mohali. Patel succumbs to Jadeja by mis-timing the ball straight back to the bowler as the left-arm spinner picks up a wicket maiden. Joe Root is in at number six.
Sharma brings about two genuine edges from Pietersen and Root but it has cost him five runs, the second edge resulting in a dropped catch by Kohli. Seven runs from the over as England approach their 150.
More runs for Root, who sweeps fine to the boundary for his second four, before Jadeja hits back with four dot deliveries.
England need a huge final 10 overs if they are to keep in contention in this match. Root grabs a couple with a drive to deep point but England need boundaries and fast.
Dhoni brings Suresh Raina into the attack and a couple of loose deliveries warrant two runs. Root seems insistent on playing the reserve sweep and he picks up another single.
Ahmed returns but he isn't allowed a couple of looseners as Root comes down the pitch to hit the ball past him for four. Pietersen is just three runs away from a 24th one-day international half-century.
Pietersen brings up his 50 from 85 balls with an edge that just avoids Dhoni. It is the 32-year-old's slowest half-century in a one-day international. Eight runs from the over and that is the minimum that England need to score for the remainder of the innings.
This is what we have been waiting for. Pietersen drives a four through mid-off before picking up a single to the same area. He goes after another delivery and he is fortunate to avoid holing out to the fielder. Root manoeuvres a couple of singles before Pietersen powers the ball to the rope to make it 12 runs from the over.
You sense that this could be a bit late from England's batsmen but they are giving their side hope of remaining in contention. It's Root's turn to pick up the pace as he strikes a six over the deep midwicket boundary. He follows that up with a four through cover, before Pietersen moves to 66 with the third four of the over. This is better.
WICKET! Pietersen (76) b Sharma
Sharma returns to bowl his final two overs, but Root scoops his first ball to the rope. Pietersen gets the strike back and after picking up seventh four, he launches the ball over deep midwicket for six. However, that is Pietersen's last contribution with the bat as he gets clean-bowled by Sharma. Jos Buttler gets off the mark in one-day internationals with a single off the last ball.
How has he dropped that?! Root sends a top-edge straight to Raina but he inexcusably drops a simple catch. Root gets a reprieve but England score just three runs from the over.
Root has only just turned 22 and he is playing in just his fourth one-day international, but he has the confidence of someone significantly more experienced. He turns his bat to play a reserve flick and the ball races to the boundary and the Yorkshireman is just two away from 50. Sharma finishes with figures of 2-47.
WICKET! Buttler 14 c Yuvraj b Jadeja
WICKET! Bresnan (0) c Yuvraj b Jadeja
Buttler goes on the attack with a huge six down the ground before he almost repeats the feat with a one-bounce four. However, Jadeja anticipates his movement down the pitch and Buttler finds Yuvraj. Tim Bresnan is the new batsman but he only lasts two balls as Yuvraj takes his second catch in three balls to hand Jadeja figures of 3-39.
James Tredwell is the new batsman and he is off the mark with two singles before Root records his first one-day international half-century with a pull-shot. He sends the next ball straight over the bowlers head to bring up England's 250 with three balls remaining. Tredwell slices the ball past the fielder for four to bring up a score of 257-7 off England's 50 overs.
Whether a target of 258 is enough or not, England will be mightily relieved to have given themselves a chance of saving the series. A total of 220 looked more likely at one stage but an excellent 57 runs from 45 balls from Joe Root has kept his side in the game.
Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen both recorded fine scores of 76 but it was Root who changed the momentum of the innings and if England can strike with the new ball, they will fancy their chances. See you in 20 minutes for the start of India's reply.
Welcome back everyone. India are about to begin their reply to England's 257-7. India are probably marginal favourites but the match remains in the balance.
Steven Finn will bowl the first ball of the innings to Gautam Gambhir.
Finn starts with a wide and after getting accustomed with the fast bowler's pace, Gambhir plays a elegant drive through mid-off for four.
After a change of ball, Bresnan is on at the other end but he soon sees the ball pulled away for four by Rohit. Bresnan found a bit of uneven bounce during the latter part of the over.
This has been a fine start from Finn. He has found the inside edge on a couple of occasions and he picks up a maiden over for his team.
What was Samit Patel doing there? He hands India two runs by throwing the ball over the fielder's head and Gambhir ends Bresnan's second over by sending the ball flashing through the covers.
Finn continues to keep the ball straight and he comes agonisingly close to finding the outside edge of Rohit's bat. A second consecutive maiden looks likely but he drifts onto Rohit's pads who takes the opportunity to strike the ball to the boundary.
WICKET! Gambhir (10) c Buttler b Bresnan
England have their first wicket and it is Gambhir who has been dismissed after edging to Buttler. If he has made contact, it is the thinnest of edges. Virat Kohli is the new batsman but he is unable to get off the mark and Bresnan has a wicket maiden.
Apart from the odd short delivery, Finn has looked solid and a pull-shot for three from Rohit is all that is available in this over.
Pietersen is in the thick of the action during Bresnan's fourth over. Firstly, he drops a one-handed catch but it would be harsh to criticise him for the drop. Two balls later, the ball falls just short of his despairing dive and India survive the over with nine wickets still intact.
It is a similar story for Finn as it has been in his previous four overs. Four dot balls are followed by a short ball that gets the treatment from Rohit as he pulls the ball to the boundary.
Bresnan sees an lbw appeal turned down with his opening delivery before Rohit reaches 2000 runs in one-day internationals with a boundary over wide mid-on.
Kohli has done well to survive that over. After just avoiding edging to Buttler, the Indian batsman sent an attempted pull-shot miles into the air but it was out of the reach of both Buttler and the fielder.
Jade Dernbach is brought into the attack by Alastair Cook but it is a poor start by the Surrey man after gifting Rohit his fifth boundary of the innings.
Samit Patel has replaced Finn but he sees Kohli look to up the tempo with a four straight down the ground. Kohli knocks the next delivery for two as India reach fifty.
Dernbach is struggling to find any line or rhythm and he will need to improve if he is to remain in the attack. Kohli looks in good touch and he is looking increasingly confident after dispatching a Dernbach delivery for four through deep point.
Patel concedes just four runs from his second over, and England will be grateful after the previous three brought 24 runs.
Dernbach continues and his first delivery is better, forcing Rohit onto the back foot. Two balls later, he finds the edge of Kohli's bat but with no slips in place, the ball races away for four. The fifty partnership for Rohit and Kohli is up in 61 balls.
WICKET! Kohli (26) c & b Tredwell
James Tredwell has replaced Patel and the change leads to England picking up their second wicket. Kohli looked to be imposing himself at the crease but he miscues the ball straight back to Tredwell to hand the spin bowler his eighth wicket of the series. Yuvraj Singh is the next man to the crease.
This is a lot better from Dernbach. His opening 12 balls saw India's batsmen score at will but he has responded well. Just two runs from this over and if England can keep it tight for the next 10 overs, they can give themselves a chance.
Yuvraj has fallen victim to Tredwell in all three of the previous matches in the series and he struggles to get him away for a single. He finally does with the fifth ball of the over but that is enough for England right now.
Dernbach restricts India to four runs during his latest over to leave him with figures of 0-29 off five overs. That may well be his last contribution for now with Cook wanting to ensure that he is available for the end of the innings.
Rohit is moving along nicely and he hits his sixth boundary off the opening ball of the over. Tredwell responds by conceding just one run off the remaining five balls and India's required run-rate is exactly six.
Joe Root is on for England as Cook opts for spin at both ends. India seem content to nudge the ball around for singles and the occasional two right now.
WICKET! Yuvraj (3) lbw b Tredwell
Big wicket for England and Tredwell has picked up the wicket of Yuvraj for the fourth match in a row. At first glance, it was a decision that could have gone either way but the replays suggest that the umpire looks to have made the correct decision. Suresh Raina is India's fifth batsman and he is off the mark with a single.
Another decent over from Root, conceding just four runs, but Rohit brings up his fifty with a single off his pads. It has taken him 73 balls but India will be grateful for the opener's contribution.
Rohit is wasting no time at the crease now. He has been patient in reaching his fifty but a controlled shot down the pitch sees him record the first six of India's innings before he comfortably sweeps the ball to the rope with the next delivery. Despite the 11 runs from that over, India still require over six runs per over.
Patel is back on in place of Root but it doesn't have the desired effect as after Rohit sweeps the ball for another boundary, Raina repeats the feat for his first four of his innings.
The momentum is swinging in Mohali and it is in India's favour. Tredwell has been England's best bowler but India's batsmen have adjusted to the threat previously offered by the spin bowler and they now require less than a run-a-ball.
Dernbach is back into the attack earlier than planned but he cannot stem the flow of runs as Raina shows plenty of aggression in firing the ball to the boundary on two occasions to take his total for the over to 11 runs.
The runs are coming far too easily for India right now and England need a breakthrough. There wasn't even a sniff of a chance during this over, however, and Raina and Rohit's partnership has reached fifty in just 37 balls.
Cook appears uncertain as to who to turn to. Dernbach continues for now but Raina adds another nine runs to his total to take him to 32 runs from 27 balls.
Another boundary for Rohit, his 12th of the innings, helps India onto 158-3 and they now require exactly 100 runs to win the series.
WICKET! Rohit (83) lbw b Finn
That is what you call an immediate impact. Finn is back to replace Dernbach and with his first delivery, he traps Rohit in front of his stumps for 83, although the ball could have been missing the leg stump.
India's captain MS Dhoni comes in at number six and he immediately manoeuvres the ball to the boundary but the next delivery brings a huge appeal from Finn, but the umpire remained unmoved. Raina edges the final ball of the over for a single and England can still have a say in this match if they can secure another wicket in the next few overs.
Bresnan is reintroduced after the wicket of Rohit but despite a bit of uncertainty between Raina and Dhoni, they survive the over after picking up three runs.
Finn appears to be crucial to England's chances now. He brings another loud appeal after striking Raina on the pads but height seemed to be the issue with that shout. Dhoni hits the ball straight back past the bowler to move to 11 off 10 balls.
Bresnan is replaced by Root after just one over. Raina advances down the pitch to hit the 22-year-old for four but he survives a stumping appeal with the following ball. It is steady enough from Root but England need a wicket.
England think they have got a wicket when Raina edges to Cook but Finn has clipped the stumps with his knee and a dead ball has been called!
Hugely controversial moment. Finn has had problems in the past in clipping the stumps with his follow through but this is the first time that it has happened today. The reaction of Raina suggests that he was not troubled by the stumps being dislodged and India seem to have got lucky with that decision. Four runs from the over.
Bresnan is back again, but nothing is going right for England as Raina brings up his fifty with an edge that would have gone straight to second slip. India score 14 runs from the over and the required run-rate has dropped to 4.76.
Finn concedes five from his final over to record figures of 1-39. He can count himself unfortunate that he did not pick up more than the solitary wicket of Rohit. India require 57 runs from 72 balls.
Bresnan strays down the leg-side and Raina takes advantage by clipping the ball for four. A pull from Raina off the next ball brings up his fifty partnership with Dhoni, who has taken a back seat during their knock. Raina has moved onto 66 off 55 deliveries.
WICKET! Dhoni (19) c Morgan b Dernbach
Are England still in this match? Dernbach is back into the attack to replace Finn and he secures the wicket of Dhoni, who attempted a cut but fired the ball straight to Morgan.
Ravindra Jadeja replaces Dhoni at the crease. You still have to favour India to reach their target with ease but the dismissal of India's skipper at least gives England a little hope. Dernbach's best over of the match.
Root replaces Bresnan and after an appeal for lbw is turned down, Jadeja clips the ball past Buttler to the boundary.
Interesting decision from Cook as he decides to bring Dernbach back out of the attack to allow Tredwell to bowl out his overs. India profit with five singles and they now require just 4.16 runs per over to win the match and the series.
Root concedes just two runs from the first five balls but his over is ruined by Raina, who flicks the final ball away for four. India are closing in.
Both sides have lost a degree of urgency with the result seemingly inevitable. Jadeja sweeps the ball away for four to leave India 20 away from victory.
A huge six down the ground takes Raina onto 83 and a further two singles see India add eight runs to their total. 11 required from 30.
Dernbach is back for his penultimate over and he does well to restrict India to four runs. After his opening overs went for a considerable amount of runs, Dernbach has bowled much better in the second half of his spell.
The match is petering out to a conclusion with four singles coming from Bresnan's over. India are about to secure the series in relatively comfortable fashion.
INDIA BEAT ENGLAND BY FIVE WICKETS!
India wrap up the series with a comfortable five-wicket victory over England. Jadeja secured the win for his side with a shot directed to deep midwicket and he and Raina easily ran the three runs required.
England did well at the start of India's innings but they needed to pick up more than just the one wicket in the opening stages of the match. Rohit's innings of 83 laid down the foundations for India and a man-of-the-match display from Raina, who ended unbeaten on 89 runs from 79 balls was enough for the home side to ease home.
That is all from me today. Thank you for following the match with Sports Mole and we welcome you back on Sunday for coverage of the final match of the series. Goodbye for now.
Written by
Darren Plant
Darren Plant
