Cricket World Cup 2019: Jonny Bairstow blows India away to keep England's hopes alive

England (337/7) beat India (306/5) by 31 runs

This was always going to be about Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Even before it was about them, it was about them. Even when it was about Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy and Ben Stokes it was about them. So it was only when both Kohli and Sharma had departed that this one was finally, mercifully in the books.

England are still alive, their World Cup hopes still in their own hands after a performance of bravery and nerve that had so publicly and disappointingly deserted them in recent matches. Bairstow led the charge with the bat with a superbly defiant century of class and courage so good it even overshadowed yet another three-figure masterclass from the genius blade of Sharma, a majestic innings that for a long while threatened to do the unthinkable.

The 31-run winning margin failed to tell anywhere near the whole story with the Edgbaston air just a matter of hours earlier thick with the weight of what was at stake, each ball in the opening stanza positively dripping with meaning. If this wasn’t the most important single day of English cricket since the Oval in 2005, then it certainly felt like it.

It certainly felt like it on a walk from the city centre that was more Bangalore than Birmingham. Inside the ground royal blue enveloped the stands with those all too rare seats not occupied by it instead replaced by electric orange, India’s all new away strip apparently a big hit with their devoted throngs already. The ninety-ten predicted split in support looked about nine per cent too generous. Kabbadi replaced Coca Cola on the advertising hoardings.

If England had forgotten who they are over the last fortnight then Roy, returning having missed the damaging defeats to Sri Lanka and Australia, gave an almost instant reminder, dismissing Mohammed Shami to the boundary twice in the opening over. This is who this England are – brawn but with the brains to match. Roy’s return here turned 12 and 1-for-1 at Headingley and Lord’s to 160 without loss. It wasn’t without its fortune, however, as he was handed a reprieve when a healthy glove behind was inexplicably not reviewed. It would cost India 45 runs as he and Bairstow smoothly got into their work. There’s a reason why they are the most potent opening pair in the game and they did so again here navigating the peerless Jasprit Bumrah with care before tucking into his supporting cast.

Hardik Pandya came and went, 21 from his first two more than enough for Kohli, the Indian skipper forced to turn to his fifth bowler in just the 15^thover. Yuzrenda Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, seventh and eighth in the ODI rankings, would eventually go for 160 as England made hay against the leg spin duo. If the opening powerplay was passive – just 47 came from it – the second brought with it the power with Bairstow bringing up both his 50 and England’s 100 with a slap over long on, notable for seemingly picking out the sole home spectator in the ground on the other side of the rope.

400 was firmly on the radar before Roy went for one too many down the ground only to find Ravindra Jadeja, on as a sub for an injured KL Rahul, waiting to take a superb catch. It mattered not to Bairstow who after taking just 27 from his first 43 deliveries brought up three figures just 47 balls later, the picture perfect response to those who, to him at least, had wanted him so badly to fail. He turned to the media centre helmetless with arms aloft like a Gladiator era Russell Crowe. Were you not entertained, Michael Vaughan?

Bairstow, a character who so often gives the impression of a man who could have an argument in an empty room, is full to the brim with agro but it is his aggression, in tandem with Roy, that makes this England side tick. This has been a tournament of opening batsmen and Bairstow once again proved he remains up there with the very best of them.

Bairstow celebrated a defiant century (AFP/Getty Images)

But, just when those in orange feared the worst, then came the strangle. Centurion Bairstow was first to go finding Rishabh Pant in the deep before a hooking Eoin Morgan departed almost as soon as he arrived for an ugly one from nine balls after an even uglier top edge to fine leg. Joe Root continued untroubled but without causing too much trouble either. There were no such worries for Stokes though who continued his rich vein of form muscling his way to a fourth half century over the last month and a third in a row. Chahal, so effective at this World Cup, departed wicketless for 88, a career-worst outing as Jos Buttler clubbed a quickfire 20 in typical Buttler fashion to push them beyond 330.

When presented with a World Cup record chase most would want to start as they mean to go on but not India who, stifled by the brilliance of Chris Woakes with the new ball, chose to survey rather than slog with Sharma in that wonderfully compact style of his particularly watchful. He would soon be joined by old running mate Kohli after Rahul who, having sat out the majority of the first innings having been injured in the field, fell caught and bowled to the aforementioned Woakes for a duck.

India have chased down 300 three times since the last World Cup with Kohli and Sharma scoring three hundreds and a 99 not out within them. They average 66 as a partnership. Kohli himself averages 65 when chasing. It was always going to be about them. They couldn’t, could they?

Instead of striking England chose to squeeze with Woakes delivering 18 balls before conceding a run. Only two scoring shots would come from his first 24. Jofra Archer chugged in from the other end, beating the bat and Kohli’s grill with snorters from short and full length. It looked in England’s hands, right until Kohli and Sharma decided to take it away. Almost at will the gas pedal was pressed, both players ramping up the tempo with perfectly-timed strokes all around the wicket. Ones became twos and boundary saves became boundaries as the required rate crept downwards. The crowd, seeing their two idols well into their running, responded as England’s heads began to bow. They couldn’t, could they?

Woakes set England on their way (Getty Images)

The irrepressible Kohli moved to 50 for a fifth consecutive time before Sharma joined him in reaching his own half century. Stokes was violently carved to the fence three times in three balls as Sharma dialed it up. The crowd came with him as the target dropped below 200. They couldn’t, could they?

Looking for answers Morgan turned to Liam Plunkett, recalled here precisely for this purpose, and he instantly repaid his captain coaxing Kohli into a false shot with substitute James Vince snaffling gratefully at point. Kohli was livid. The win percentage dipped from 35% to 25%. England were back in the game.

Joined by the wonderfully unpredictable Pant, Sharma continued his inexorable march reaching a third hundred of the tournament with the minimum of fuss. The bat was raised but the helmet remained. The real work was still to be done. But he didn’t reckon with Woakes, so economic in his first spell, coming back and with the first ball of his second immediately pulling out the golden ticket, Sharma edging behind to Buttler for 102.

The floodgates were open. The immovable finally moved. Pant would soon go too thanks in the main to a fine catch on the boundary from Woakes before Plunkett returned to see off Pandya after a spritely 45. MS Dhoni biffed but the damage was done. England had done enough. They would live to fight another day.