Brigdford: India suffered a massive drubbing, registering their biggest defeat by runs in Men’s T20I history after a crushing 125-run defeat to England, who produced a commanding all-round performance. Chasing a daunting target of 202, India was bundled out for a paltry 76 in just 11.4 overs in the third T20I. The comprehensive victory handed England an insurmountable 2-0 lead in the five-match series after the opening match was washed out. The match was played on Tuesday, 7th July, at Trent Bridge, West Bridgford.
The match began with India winning the toss and electing to bowl first. With this decision, India made a composed start as Arshdeep Singh bowled a maiden over in the very first over of the innings. However, opener Josh Buttler launched a fiery counterattack, scoring a brisk 36 off 21 balls before debutant Prince Yadav dismissed him with a pinpoint yorker on the very first delivery of his spell. Prince struck again three overs later in his second over, removing England skipper Harry Brook for 16. Harshit Rana then continued the momentum by dismissing Jacob Bethell (13 off 9 balls) and Tom Banton for a duck off back-to-back deliveries, reducing England to 111/4 after 12 overs. However, Phil Salt anchored the innings with a controlled, composed, yet aggressive knock of 70 off 44 balls before being dismissed by Axar Patel’s slower delivery in the 17th over. Sam Curran provided a strong finishing touch with an impressive unbeaten 41 off 24 balls, helping England comfortably cross the 200-run mark. England eventually finished on a commanding 201/7 at the end of their 20 overs. Although debutant Prince Yadav impressed with figures of 2/30, Harshit Rana claimed 2/40, and Axar Patel picked up 1/49, the Indian bowlers failed to restrict England below 200. India also missed a few run-out opportunities, including one crucial chance, which proved costly in the end.
Chasing 202, India faced a complete disaster as their batting line-up collapsed spectacularly. The batting order failed to find any momentum against England’s fierce pace attack. Opener Abhishek Sharma was dismissed by Josh Tongue in the second over after scoring 10 runs, while Vaibhav Suryavanshi struck two sixes before being removed by Jofra Archer for 13. The wickets continued to fall as Ishan Kishan was dismissed for 13 by Josh Tongue. Archer then delivered the decisive blows by dismissing captain Shreyas Iyer (5) and Axar Patel (10), reducing India to five wickets down inside the powerplay. The top order was completely dismantled by the relentless bowling attack of Archer and Tongue. The collapse continued as Will Jacks stumped Tilak Varma for 3, while Josh Tongue dismissed Shivam Dube (2) and Harshit Rana (9), finishing with outstanding figures of 4/28. Adil Rashid then wrapped up the innings by removing Arshdeep Singh (4) and Varun Chakravarthy (5), as India were bowled out for just 76 in 11.4 overs, recording their second-lowest total in the format. England sealed a crushing 125-run victory with a dominant all-round display. Jofra Archer was deservedly named the Player of the Match for his stunning bowling spell, finishing with impressive figures of 3/29 in his three overs.
After facing this embarrassing defeat, India still have two matches left to play. England have already secured the series with a 2-0 lead, while India will look to salvage some pride and avoid a complete whitewash, following their recent whitewash in Ireland. Both teams will play the fourth T20I on Thursday, 9th July, at the Gloucestershire Cricket Ground, Bristol.
