England overcome Varun mystery to rattle India in 3rd T20I with superb bowling

 

In the five-match T20 series, Suryakumar Yadav’s team entered the Rajkot match leading 2-0. A win would have secured the series for India. However, batting failures allowed Jos Buttler’s England to bounce back. In reply to England’s 171/9, India ended their innings at 145/9, losing the match by 26 runs. Despite the defeat, India still leads the series 2-1.

In a game that marked Mohammed Shami’s return to international cricket, the star of the match was Varun Chakravarthy. The Kolkata Knight Riders spinner gave his all to provide Bengal’s pace bowler with happy memories of his comeback. His brilliance with the ball turned England’s 83/1 into 127/8. Chakravarthy’s spell yielded 5 wickets for just 24 runs, dismantling England’s middle order. He dismissed Buttler (24), Jamie Smith (6), Jamie Overton (0), Brydon Carse (3), and Jofra Archer (0), putting India in the driver’s seat during the first innings. Chakravarthy also had a chance for a hat-trick after removing both Jamies in the 14th over but couldn’t complete it. Despite this, his performance on the spin-friendly Rajkot pitch exposed England’s struggles against quality spin bowling.

England, however, managed a competitive score, thanks to Ben Duckett and Liam Livingstone. Duckett scored a quickfire 51 off 28 balls at the top, while Livingstone contributed a breathtaking 43 off 24 under pressure that included several big hits.  Livingstone held the innings together after wickets kept tumbling. Late contributions from Adil Rashid (10*) and Mark Wood (10*) ensured England put up a fighting total.

India’s first breakthrough came from Hardik Pandya, who dismissed Phil Salt (5) in the second over. Pandya also removed Livingstone later, giving India much-needed relief. Despite the spin-friendly conditions, Pandya’s short-pitched deliveries troubled England’s batters. Axar Patel also bowled well, conceding 19 runs and picking up 1 wicket. Mohammed Shami, returning after 437 days, went wicketless but bowled effectively in his 3-over spell, giving away 25 runs.

Chasing 172, India’s innings never gained momentum. Sanju Samson (3) failed again, and Suryakumar Yadav (14) couldn’t anchor the innings at No. 3. Abhishek Sharma (24 off 14) started well but fell early, while centurion from the previous match, Tilak Varma (18), was undone by Rashid’s spin. The pitch at Rajkot became increasingly challenging for batting in the second half, with variable bounce and sharp turn troubling Indian batters. Rashid’s deliveries often posed significant threats, especially in the middle overs. Slow batting from Hardik Pandya and Washington Sundar added to India’s woes. Sundar managed just 6 runs off 15 balls, and the left-right batting combinations didn’t work in India’s favor.

Towards the end, Pandya and Axar Patel made a desperate attempt to salvage the match but couldn’t overcome the mounting pressure. Pandya fell for 40 off 35, caught by Buttler off Overton at long-off. Axar added 15 off 16 but couldn’t make a significant impact. Once Pandya was dismissed, India’s hopes of victory were extinguished. Shami scored 7 runs on his return, while Dhruv Jurel (2) failed to deliver. Ravi Bishnoi (1*) and Chakravarthy (5*) remained unbeaten at the end.

For England, Rashid bowled economically, taking 1 wicket for 15 runs. However, the standout bowler was Overton, who claimed 3 wickets for 24 runs. Archer and Carse picked up two wickets each to ensure India’s chase fell short.