IND vs ENG: 4th T20I Review – India outclass England to seal series in Pune
India beat England by 15 runs in the fourth T20I at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Friday, January 31, to bag the series with a game to spare. Jos Buttler finally won a toss in the series and invited India to bat first and the decision was immediately vindicated as Saqib Mahmood struck thrice in the second over to send India onto the backfoot. Rinku Singh and Abhishek Sharma formed a steady 45-run partnership off 32 balls to steady the ship. However, both batters failed to convert their starts into substantial scores.
India was in a precarious position at 79/5 in the 10th over when Hardik Pandya joined forces with Shivam Dube. The two all-rounders showed calmness and then aggressiveness as they forged a spectacular 87-run stand-off in merely 45 balls to bail India out of trouble. Hardik and Dube scored 53 each, off 30 and 34 balls, respectively. The Men in Blue finished their innings with a formidable total of 181/9.
In reply, England got off to a rollicking start in the powerplay as Ben Duckett and Phil Salt added 62 runs. The former departed off the last ball of the powerplay after scoring a 19-ball 39. Salt and Buttler departed in the next two overs as England went from 62/0 to 67/3.
Harry Brook got off to a brisk start as he added important partnerships with Liam Livingstone and Jacob Bethell. Varun Chakaravarthy, who has been the best bowler in the series by a distance, went wicketless in his first three overs. However, in his final over, he dismissed Brook and Brydon Carse to turn the tide in India’s favour. The former played an enterprising 51-run knock of 26 balls.
England kept losing wickets at the back end of their innings and were eventually bowled out for 166 in 19.4 overs. Harshit Rana, who came in as a concussion substitute for Dube, picked up three wickets and so did Ravi Bishnoi as India took an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series with the 15-run win in Pune.
Best Performers of the match
Hardik Pandya – 53 off 30 balls
The Baroda all-rounder took his time to get accustomed to the conditions. However, once he got himself set at the crease, he took the England bowlers to the cleaners. Hardik smashed 53 off 30 balls, belting four fours and as many sixes. He used all his experience to bail India out of a difficult position.
Ravi Bishnoi – 3/28 in four overs
Ravi Bishnoi picked one wicket from the first three games. However, he showed his class in the fourth T20I. The leg-spinner gave India their first breakthrough as he dismissed the dangerous Duckett in the sixth over. In his following over, Bishnoi got the better of Buttler. In his final over, he picked up the wicket of Jofra Archer and eventually finished with figures of 3/28.
What’s next for the two teams?
The two teams will now travel to Mumbai to play the fifth and final T20I at the iconic Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, February 2. This is going to be the last match before the two teams engage in a three-match ODI series.
