England lose against India despite Eoin Morgan notching a brilliant ton as tourists fall just short of mega 382-run target
Centuries from MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh gave hosts a massive first innings total, with tourists nearly stealing win
EOIN MORGAN blasted a brilliant ton, but England fell agonisingly short of mammoth 382-run target against India.
The hosts set Morgan and Co a mammoth target of 382 to win and claw their way back into the three-match series, and England got off to a solid start thanks to 50s from both Jason Roy and Joe Root.
But once those two fell, with Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler also departing cheaply, things looked bleak for the visitors in Cuttack.
However, a superb partnership between skipper Morgan and Moeen Ali gave England hope of snatching a famous victory.
When Morgan was unfortunately run out for an exquisite 102 - from just 81 balls, including five sixes - it was all too much for England.
Although Liam Plunkett gave it some late welly, the last over was something of an anti-climax.
Earlier in the day, England got off to a terrific start, reducing India to 25-3.
However, a whopping 256-run partnership between Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni - both notching tons - meant the visitors were always chasing an unlikely victory, ultimately falling 15 runs short.
Following the disappointing defeat, Morgan said: "We probably weren't at our best with ball or the bat but we still competed and it's tremendously disappointing not to get over the line.
"Bowling to MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh is very difficult at times. The margin for error is quite small and the challenge is to break the partnership a little earlier.
"We showed a lot of fight, we have a huge amount of talent. It's been a magnificent day's cricket."