England seal one-day series by defeating Bangladesh
Third one-day international, Edgbaston: England 347-7 (50 overs) bt Bangladesh 203 (45 overs) by 144 runs Match scorecard
By Jamie Lillywhite
Strauss played a variety of shots to silence critics of his one-day batting
England took the one-day international series with Bangladesh 2-1 after a 144-run win in the decider at Edgbaston.
They lost Craig Kieswetter in the first over but Andrew Strauss and Jonathan Trott put on 250 from 241 balls, an ODI record partnership by an England pair.
Strauss struck 16 fours and five sixes in his 154, while Trott made 110 on his home ground and Ravi Bopara hit 45 in 16 balls as England amassed 347-7.
Bangladesh could only muster 203 all out in reply as Bopara took 4-48.
Victory was important for England as it avoided potential embarrassment following their defeat in Bristol on Saturday and continued their revival in one-day cricket this year, following the World Twenty20 triumph and 3-2 series victory against Australia.
For a man whose place in the one-day team was questioned at the start of the year, Strauss played an imperious innings as he made the highest one-day score by an England captain, and the third highest by any England batsman.
ENGLAND'S HIGHEST ODI TOTALS
391-4 (50 ovs) v Bangladesh, Trent Bridge, 2005
363-7 v (55 ovs) v Pakistan, Trent Bridge, 1992
347-7 (50 ovs) v Bangladesh, Edgbaston, 2010
340-6 (50 ovs) v New Zealand, Napier, 2008
334-4 (60 ovs) v India, Lord's, 1975
But Bangladesh had only themselves to blame, having put the home side in on a green-tinged pitch and picked up a wicket in the opening over.
It was skipper Mashrafe Mortaza who nipped one back off the seam to squeeze through the defences of Kieswetter, via an inside edge.
However, his fellow seamers failed to utilise the helpful conditions by persistently dropping short.
Strauss pulled a rare bad ball from Mortaza for six in the third over and the 50 stand with Trott came from 66 balls, with both batsmen demonstrating their versatility with reverse sweeps off the spinners, as well as playing more conventional shots.
The England captain used his feet to excellent effect, skipping down the wicket to launch slow left-armer Abdur Razzak over long-on for a huge six to move into the 90s.
And he duly recorded his first limited-overs century since the West Indies tour in March 2009 as he and Trott brought up the 200 partnership from only 212 balls.
Trott reached his first one-day century for England with a crisp cover drive to the boundary, his 12th four, and the South African-born batsman's stern-faced celebration provided an answer to those who criticised the way he batted in his 94 at Bristol.
Bopara impressed with the ball as well as the bat as England took early scalps
The stand was eventually ended when Trott thumped Mortaza to mid-wicket and the promoted Luke Wright swiped an edge first ball to give the Bangladesh skipper commendable figures of 3-31.
Paul Collingwood and Eoin Morgan perished cheaply to catches in the deep and Strauss finally sliced a catch to deep cover in the 46th over, 13 short of Robin Smith's record by an England batsman.
But the recalled Bopara, who hit a Twenty20 century for county side Essex the previous day, smashed three sixes in the final over to give England their highest one-day total at Edgbaston.
Predictably Tamim Iqbal went after the bowling from the first ball of the Bangladesh reply, but after three fours he was deceived by an Ajmal Shahzad slower ball in the third over and Wright took a neat catch at mid-off.
Shahzad was spearheading the attack in the absence of James Anderson, who was officially rested as part of England's rotation policy, although figures of 3-120 from 19 overs in the series might be a closer reflection of the situation.
And the combative Yorkshireman struck again in the fifth over when Imrul Kayes fended a sharply lifting ball to the keeper.
Anderson would surely have relished an opportunity on perhaps the most bowler-friendly surface of the summer, but his involvement was limited to substitute fielding when Shahzad was forced off with hamstring trouble.
Tim Bresnan, his replacement in this match, was again expensive but removed Junaid Siddique for 25, courtesy of another fine catch by Wright in the deep.
Stuart Broad ended Jahurul Islam's promising 27 when Strauss took a simple catch at mid-wicket, and when Shakib and Mohammad Ashraful finished up at the same end, resulting in the former being run out, it was 86-5.
Bopara's impressive return continued when he trapped Ashraful in his first over and he went on to collect an international career-best haul, but the Bangladesh innings was allowed to meander in tedious fashion.
After much of the crowd had drifted away, Mahmudullah was the eighth wicket to fall, adjudged lbw for 42 from 81 balls, and they were finally all out in the 45th over.
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