Kolkata, Oct 25: Diwali celebrations came a day early for India as they completed a 5-0 whitewash of England with a crushing 95-run victory in the fifth and final One-day international here today.
Chasing India's competitive 272, the visitors had a rollicking start courtesy skipper Alastair Cook (60 off 61 balls; 8x4) and Craig Keiswetter (63 off 64; 9x4, 1x6) who put on 129 runs, but the visitors lost the plot after their dismissals.
Rookie pacer Varun Aaron provided the breakthrough with a tactical change in line before the Englishmen fell to the Indian spinners' guile to be bundled out for 176 in 37 overs.
The visitors lost all the 10 wickets with addition of just 47 runs as their weakness against the spinners was exposed once again.
Left-arm orthodox spinner Ravindra Jadeja was the wrecker-in-chief with a superb four for 33, while off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin claimed three for 21.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni may not like to call it a ‘revenge', but it's definitely a redemption time for the world champions who were demolished in England in both the Test and one-day series.
Put into, India struggled to come to terms on a slow Eden Gardens track before skipper Dhoni unleashed himself with another unbeaten knock, this time a 75 not out off just 60 balls, to lift the team to 271 for eight.
Dhoni struck four sixes and three fours during his stay at the crease as India, who were struggling to go past 250 at one point of time, plundered 39 runs in the last two overs.
England bowler Steven Finn took two wickets in an over to put India under pressure but the hosts broke the shackles in the slog overs, with 60 coming in the last five overs thanks to Dhoni's late outburst.
