Sunday’s match was effectively decided in the first 10 overs.

Depth exposed

England were only 58/0, but Ben Duckett and Jacob Bethell had already identified India’s biggest problem. Arshdeep found movement, Prince sprayed the ball on either side of the wicket, and Prasidh Krishna, despite recovering late in the powerplay, could not make the inroads India needed from him. Once the powerplay was done, Gurnoor struggled to settle into a consistent length.

The openers respected the good deliveries and waited for India’s bowlers to err, which the bowlers did. By the time Duckett and Bethell added 192 for the opening wicket, the platform had been laid.

It would be simplistic to blame the defeat solely on Bumrah’s absence. But it reinforced how much India’s attack depends on the contrasting skills of Bumrah and Siraj.

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Bumrah remains arguably the most complete white-ball fast bowler in the game. He can swing the ball, bowl with the semi-old ball in the middle, execute yorkers at will and mix his pace without losing his control. Siraj, meanwhile, offers relentless hard lengths with the three-quarter seam that make scoring difficult even when wickets do not come.

The bowlers on Sunday gave glimpses but lacked consistency.

Missing skills

Arshdeep remains a fascinating case. Few left-arm seamers in world cricket swing the new ball as consistently as he does. When he pitched the ball up to Duckett on Sunday, there was movement, and it even occasionally beat the bat. The trouble was when the ball stopped swinging.

Batsmen in modern-day 50-over cricket have started to see off the initial movement. Once the shine fades, bowlers require other ways to take wickets. Bumrah has yorkers. Siraj has hard lengths. Mohammed Shami had reverse swing while relentlessly attacking the stumps.

Arshdeep is still developing that second weapon to add to his armoury. While his conventional swing remains his biggest strength, he and others are yet to conjure a plan to use the semi-old ball that is brought on after the 34th over to either generate reverse swing quickly or fall back on other methods such as yorkers and pace variations. It is a different skill set altogether, and one India’s backup seamers are still learning.

Shubman Gill (C) of India with teammates during the 3rd ODI International match between England and India at the Lord’s Cricket Ground, London, England on July 19, 2026. (CREIMAS)

Prince entered the series with a reputation as a reverse-swing exponent, but England’s batsmen never allowed India to exploit that weapon at Lord’s. Whether it was the conditions, ball management or the bowlers’ execution, India were unable to generate the kind of movement that has become Prince’s calling card.

Even Prasidh, India’s most experienced seamer on the day, showed both sides of his game. After a wicketless opening spell, he fought back to dismiss Bethell and Harry Brook by using his extra bounce. But he leaked runs at the death as Jos Buttler attacked him.

That should not overshadow what has otherwise been an encouraging ODI run. Since October 2025, Prasidh has picked up five wickets in the Powerplay at an economy of 4.96 and nine more through the middle overs at 6.04. He has also quietly established himself as one of India’s more reliable death bowlers, claiming seven wickets in 10 matches at the end of the innings. Sunday, however, was one of those rare days when none of his strengths proved enough.

None of the above means India are facing a bowling crisis. Bumrah’s return, combined with Siraj’s comeback, could restore the experience India needs in their arsenal. But Sunday’s defeat highlighted how quickly the quality drops once they are unavailable.

India have invested heavily in developing batting depth over the last two years, with an increasing preference for all-rounders in the XI.

Their pace reserves now require similar attention. With the ODI World Cup just over a year away, Sunday’s defeat highlighted an area India cannot afford to ignore. The challenge is not just identifying more fast bowlers to support Bumrah and Siraj. It is developing bowlers capable of thriving in a format that increasingly rewards versatility over specialisation.

(With stats inputs from Lalith Kalidas).