IND vs ENG: 3rd T20I Review – England bounce back to keep the series alive

England won the third T20I at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot by 26 runs to keep the five-match series alive with the scoreline reading 2-1, with two more games to go in the series.

India once won their third toss in a row and chose to bowl first. Despite the early wicket of Philip Salt, India could not put a lid on the scoring thanks to the quickfire partnership between skipper Jos Buttler and Ben Duckett, who slammed seven fours and two sixes in his 28-ball 51.

However, India’s new bowling talisman Varun Chakravarthy worked his magic in the middle overs once again, claiming his second fifer in T20Is. In the end, England finished with a competitive 171/9 thanks to the brisk knocks by Liam Livingstone (43 off 24) and Duckett.

India’s innings did not start well as the hosts lost half their side with just 85 on the board as none amongst Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, and Suryakumar Yadav could convert their starts into something substantial. The Indian batters struggled aplenty against a disciplined English bowling line up and the story was no different for Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel. The duo hung in for a while but struggled to keep up with the ever-climbing run-rate before eventually falling under pressure as England restricted them to 145/9.

Top performers of the match

Ben Duckett – 51 of 28

It was one great innings from Duckett who had a disappointing outing in the first two matches. He took the attack to the Indian bowlers after getting his eyes in and never looked in trouble. Duckett’s innings included seven fours and two sixes.

Varun Chakravarthy – 5/24

Though this spell came in a losing cause, Chakravarthy’s was still one of the best spells seen in T20 cricket. The mystery spinner once again proved to be a challenge for the England batters in the middle overs.

What next?

The two teams will meet in the fourth T20I on January 31 at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune.