Yuvraj Singh blasted his second consecutive century and grabbed four wickets to spur India to a 54-run win over England in the second one-dayer on Monday.
The 26-year-old top-scored with 118 to lift India out of trouble and to an imposing 292-9 before denting England’s fightback, earning the hosts a 2-0 lead in the seven-game series.
England collapsed to 238 all out after Yuvraj ended a 96-run second-wicket partnership by removing both Owais Shah (58) and Matt Prior (38) in successive overs, before returning 4-28 bowling slow left-arm spin on a sluggish pitch.
He returned to dismiss Andrew Flintoff (43) and skipper Kevin Pietersen (33) in the same over after their racy 74-run fourth-wicket partnership had kept alive England hopes before they lost four wickets for eight runs.
Yuvraj, who stroked 138 not out to set up India’s crushing 158-run win in Friday’s first contest of the seven-match series, took over after England paceman Stuart Broad’s triple strike left the hosts reeling at 29-3.
He struck his 10th one-day hundred and raised 134 runs for the fourth wicket with opener Gautam Gambhir, who made 70 for his second fifty of the series.
Broad removed Yuvraj to return 4-55 but Yusuf Pathan hammered 50 not out from 29 balls on his 26th birthday to help India regain the initiative.
The third match will be played in Kanpur on Thursday. — Reuters