Pune, Jan 31 England’s captain, Jos Buttler, acknowledged his team’s initial brilliance but admitted that they lost momentum at crucial moments in the chase allowing India to clinch the T20I series 3-1 with a thrilling 15-run victory in the fourth match at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium here on Friday.
Buttler emphasised the need for his team to commit more to their game plan to unlock their full potential.
“We started brilliantly, taking wickets in the powerplay and at the end of the batting powerplay, we were in a great position. We should have gone on to win the game. We did some really good things in the game. We dropped Dube (on his) first ball and he went on to play a really good innings.
"With the bat, we were in a fantastic position and lost a couple of wickets quickly," he said after the match on Friday.
Asked about his takeaways from this match, Buttler said, there are a few key things that his team will take from this match. "Just to double down on how we want to play, really impressed with how we've committed to that. I think we can commit more and when we do that, we'll get more out of ourselves,” said Buttler after the match.
The game saw some dramatic moments, starting with England’s fast bowler, Saqib Mahmood, making history with the first-ever triple-wicket maiden in men’s T20 internationals. Mahmood’s spell reduced India to a disastrous 12/3, with key players Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, and Suryakumar Yadav all back in the dugout within the first two overs. But India’s response was emphatic, as Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube took control of the innings. The duo shared an 88-run partnership, with both finishing on 53, helping India post a competitive total of 181/9.
England’s chase began with aggressive intent as openers Phil Salt and Ben Duckett punished India’s seamers during the power-play. Duckett, in particular, was in sublime touch, racing to 39 off just 19 balls. England seemed well on track at 62/0 in six overs. But India’s bowlers made a swift comeback. Ravi Bishnoi dismissed Duckett on the final ball of the power-play, and Axar Patel followed up with the crucial wicket of Salt. Bishnoi struck again, removing Buttler for just 2 runs, leaving England at 67/3 in the eighth over.
Despite the setbacks, England's Harry Brook stepped up, launching a counter-attack. His blistering fifty off 26 balls kept the visitors in the hunt. But just as England was regaining control, Varun Chakravarthy made the breakthrough, removing Brook for 51 and Brydon Carse in quick succession, leaving England in disarray.
Harshit Rana, who made his T2OI debut as a concussion substitute made a quick impact. He dismissed Liam Livingstone first, and his debut performance continued to impress as he struck again to remove Jacob Bethell and then Jamie Overton in the final over. His figures of 3/33 were crucial in India’s victory. As England’s lower order collapsed under mounting pressure, Arshdeep Singh sealed the win by dismissing Saqib Mahmood, wrapping up the innings at 166/9.
With the win, India sealed the series 3-1, ensuring the final T20I at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai would be a dead rubber.
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