MOHALI (India) - India took an unassailable 3-1 lead against England in their five-match one-day cricket series after they beat the visitors by five wickets on Wednesday.

Rohit Sharma (83) and Suresh Raina (89 not out) helped India reach 258-5 in 47.3 overs, after their bowlers had limited England to 257-7 in 50 overs, reported the Press Trust of India.

The Indians got off to a poor start when Gautam Gambhir got out for 10. That put pressure on the middle-order and, when Virat Kohli (26) and Yuvraj Singh (3) perished in quick succession, it looked like England would sail through.

But Raina - helped along by Ravindra Jadeja (21 not out) - did the finishing job to perfection with 15 balls to spare.

The crucial contribution of Raina was not without controversy as he was caught by Alastair Cook at slip on 41 off Steven Finn, only for umpire Steve Davis to call dead ball because Finn knocked the bails off with his knee in his delivery stride.

Earlier, the unheralded Joe Root (57 not out) and Kevin Pietersen (76) provided the late sparks with some lusty hits as England recovered from a mid-innings slump to post a decent 257-7 on a pitch which appeared perfect for batting.

Spinner Jadeja was the pick of the Indian bowlers with 3-39, while Ishant Sharma 2-47 and R. Ashwin 2-63 were the other wicket-takers.