Chepauk witnessed another thriller, as Tilak Varma played a match-winning knock to help India secure a 2-0 lead in the five-match T20I series against England. Varma’s performance took the centre stage in a gripping encounter, overshadowing the all-round heroics of the Brydon Carse. Set 166 to win, India kept losing wickets but managed to sneak through by two wickets.
The chase saw India start at a breakneck speed, with Abhishek Sharma hitting Jofra Archer for three boundaries in the first over. However, the batting hero from the previous match and his opening partner, Sanju Samson, went back to the pavilion as swiftly as they were hitting the balls to the boundary.
Varma, showing sublime poise and calm, dug deep and played an unbeaten, match-defining knock of 72 from 55 balls at a strike rate of 130.9. This included five sixes — four of them off Archer’s 145kmph-plus rockets — and four fours.
Despite the left-hander from Hyderabad showing maturity in pacing his innings, wickets fell at regular intervals at the other end. Carse took three for 29 in his four overs, which included the scalps of Suryakumar Yadav, Dhruv Jurel and a well-set set Washington Sundar. In the end, it was Ravi Bishnoi who stood his ground, helping Varma and India secure an important victory in the final over.
Initially, dew was the deciding factor, with India choosing to bowl first. Both sides made a couple of changes. Nitish Kumar Reddy and Rinku Singh were ruled out due to injury. They were replaced by Washington and Jurel. For England, Jacob Bethell wasn’t well, while Jamie Overton replaced Gus Atkinson. The visitors continued to rely on fast bowlers, with the pitch showing a few cracks and a good covering of grass — most of it pretty dead. It was a good surface to bat on, with not much spin on offer.
England’s batters were ready to take on the Indian spinners, in sync with the strategy employed by coach Brendon McCullum across formats. The spin trio of Axar Patel, Bishnoi and Varun Chakravarthy, along with Washington and Abhishek, outfoxed the batters by striking at crucial moments, although they were slightly expensive at times. The five spinners ended with collective figures of six wickets for 118 runs from 14 overs.
Once again, it was Jos Buttler who decided to play the antagonist, striking the ball across his arc before holing out to Axar while attempting a pull to deep mid-wicket. However, England’s lower middle order, consisting of Jamie Smith — who was on debut — and Carse, showed similar intent, striking the ball hard and out of the park.
India, who started with Arshdeep Singh getting hit for a boundary on the first ball of the match, were quickly able to get back into the game. Arshdeep bounced Salt outside off to get him out in the first over. Harry Brook, who had lamented the smog as the reason for England’s failure against spin in Kolkata, was bamboozled by Varun. The vice-captain was done in flight, as the ball snuck between the bat and pad to hit the top of off-stump.
The post Tilak Varma plays like senior pro to put India 2-0 up against England appeared first on Sports News Portal | Latest Sports Articles | Revsports.
