Lord's offers Rohit the chance to change the conversation

Where do we start? This was supposed to be a Sunday blockbuster in London, a series-deciding ODI promising all the romance that Lord's usually does and featuring four of the defining batters of the last decade in Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Joe Root and Jos Buttler.

Instead, for much of the last couple of days, it was anything but. It became a referendum on Rohit Sharma's future, an endless cycle of retirement speculation, social media pile-ons and vitriolic fan wars, until the BCCI felt compelled to step in and publicly state that no such discussion had taken place.

Now, with the noise finally receding, the occasion has quietly returned to what it was always meant to be: a decider at Lord's. And perhaps that's fitting. For all the conversations about what comes next, Sunday offers four modern greats another opportunity to remind everyone why they remain central to the present. And why, with an ODI World Cup about a year away, they still have unfinished business.

Root has already produced the defining innings of the series, his match-winning 99* in Cardiff reaffirming why England continue to build around him in this format. Kohli, in his time at the crease, has looked every bit the master craftsman, his measured half-century a reminder that few batters understand the rhythm of an ODI quite like he does. Buttler's statement came a little earlier in the tour, in the final T20I in Southampton, where he rediscovered the range and freedom that once made him the world's most feared white-ball batter.

That leaves Rohit Sharma. The retirement chatter may have been misplaced, but it was not entirely detached from reality. His returns have dipped, his Powerplay strike-rate has lost some of its old menace, and the explosive starts that once defined India's ODI blueprint have become less frequent. Lord's, then, offers more than just a series decider. It offers Rohit the chance to replace speculation with substance, and perhaps turn days of questions into an evening of answers.

When: Sunday, 19 July, 2026 at 11:00 AM local / 3:30 PM IST

Where: Lord's, London

What to expect: Not another Edgbaston or Cardiff. It's always a busy cricket season at Lord's, and the sheer amount of cricket has meant that the square doesn't quite have the pace and bounce like some of the other venues in the UK. That may play more into India's hands, although England's recent record here remains formidable: five wins, two defeats and the tied 2019 World Cup final from their last eight ODIs.

India's bowling coach Morne Morkel expects a "tricky" pitch and has already advised the batters to "give yourself that extra five to 10 balls" before looking to cash in. Harry Brook said that the new ball would be quite important on the surface, adding that it "generally gets quite slow here". It's set to be pleasant and sunny, with a high of 22 degrees expected.

Team news

England: The hosts looked a much better balanced side after replacing Liam Dawson with Gus Atkinson. They will be tempted to stick to the winning combination.

Probable XI: Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood

India: KL Rahul, who missed the Cardiff ODI due to illness, is expected to replace Ishan Kishan. Washington Sundar is out with a right hamstring injury, with Harsh Dubey named his replacement.

But with another left-arm spinning allrounder in Axar Patel already in the playing XI, Kuldeep Yadav might get a go, although his form in 2026 hasn't been great, with only three wickets in 35 overs at an average of 74.66.

Probable XI: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (c), Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Gurnoor Brar, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna

Did you know?

• India are yet to win two straight bilateral ODI series since 2024. Between 2021 and 2023, they had won 12 of the 16 ODI bilateral series.
• India lead 9-3 in ODIs vs England since 2021.
• Since 2025, Joe Root has scored 1230 runs in 20 ODIs at an average of 76.87 and a strike-rate of 91.58

What they said

"Root has been such a good player for so many years and it's awesome to have him on the side. We probably have depended on him quite a little bit in recent times in ODI cricket and Test cricket. Hopefully, the boys can learn from what he's doing, myself included, and realise how easy he's making batting look, to be able to just rotate the strike. If we can add a little bit of Joe Root into our batting as a collective team, then we'll definitely be in some strong positions." - Harry Brook, England captain

"It is hard work with a new ball up front. We have seen that in the entire series. The ball is moving around. No doubt Rohit will work it out, he has done it in the past. He is experienced. And he just brings that calmness to the batting line-up. So without a doubt, no worries and concerns at all with the way he is going about things." - Morne Morkel, India bowling coach