England may want to blow away sides with pace but the slow stuff matters, too. Adil Rashid was masterful in Rajkot, the leg-spinner delivering the key wicket of Tilak Varma, conceding no boundaries and securing his side’s first victory of this tour. India failed to chase down 172, their series lead now standing at 2-1 with two T20 internationals still to play.
Rashid’s spell of one for 15 was vital after an English implosion with the bat. Ben Duckett had excelled early on, striking 51 off 28, before Varun Chakravarthy played chief nemesis with figures of five for 25. The visitors were unrelenting in their aggression, a fact welcomed by the hosts as England lost five wickets for 19 runs.
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India, however, could never get a proper hold in their reply, the wickets shared by five English bowlers but Rashid the dominant force. Hardik Pandya hit a late 35-ball 40 but Jamie Overton mixed up his pace to collect three wickets and secure a 26-run win.
Jos Buttler’s presence at the crease was demanded not long after he lost the toss once again. Pandya was too clever for Phil Salt, his nuance – a fierce bouncer followed by a fuller slower ball – prompting the opener’s miscue to cover for five.
Duckett, to England’s fortune, found form. This was the left-hander at his Dance Dance Revolution best, bopping around the crease. He scooped Mohammed Shami for six, feasted on Pandya and reverse-swept Washington Sundar for his fifth four in a row. Buttler could sit in the sidecar during their stand of 76.
But Charkravarthy’s peril lurked close by. The 33-year-old spinner has long been part of the Indian Premier League but is finally finding global success, England bewildered by him in the past week. The solitary first-class appearance in 2018 adds to the mystery while his bachelor’s degree in architecture explains the immaculate lines. Chakravarthy produced an upright seam to have Buttler dismissed for 24, a reverse sweep tickling a catch behind in the ninth over.
When Duckett found deep midwicket off Axar Patel in the following over, the collapse was on. Chakravarthy was in the middle of it, the two Jamies – Smith and Overton – gone with consecutive deliveries in the 14th. Jofra Archer failed to play the googly that granted Chakravarthy five, England having fallen from 108 for three to 127 for eight.
Liam Livingstone heaved away over the on-side for a 24-ball 43, ensuring a competitive second half.
The quicks gave England hope with early wickets. Archer rushed Sanju Samson on the pull before taking a fine running catch to dismiss Abhishek Sharma for 24; Mark Wood limited Suryakumar Yadav to 14 after the India captain had flicked Archer over fine leg. The most damaging sight for England in the powerplay was Smith leaving the field during the fourth over after beginning the match with a tight calf, Salt taking the gloves.
The man that mattered was Varma, an unbeaten 72 having won Saturday’s second match. A thump through cover off Brydon Carse got him going, pace his friend. But Rashid intervened in his first over. The flighted leg-spinner came back sharply to bowl Varma and leave India four down at the end of the eighth over. Rashid unleashed the revs across his spell, his tossed-up spin more classical than the work of his Indian counterparts, the batters having to settle for singles. By the time he was done with his four overs, India required 82 from 36 balls. Pandya teed off but this was no one-man job.
