New Delhi: England defeated India by four wickets in the second T20 International at Old Trafford on Friday, chasing down a target of 191 in 19 overs to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series after the opening match was abandoned due to rain.
India made a dream start with the ball as Arshdeep Singh dismissed Phil Salt off the very first delivery of the innings before removing Jos Buttler for a duck, leaving England reeling at 0/2.
England captain Harry Brook responded with a blistering 39 off 15 balls, smashing four boundaries and three sixes to shift the momentum. Jacob Bethell then anchored the chase with an unbeaten 76 off 46 deliveries, including five fours and five sixes. Tom Banton also played a vital knock of 39 off 32 balls.
Will Jacks made 9, Sam Curran scored 7, while Jofra Archer remained unbeaten on 10 as England reached the target with six wickets down.
For India, Arshdeep Singh was the standout bowler with 3 wickets, while Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy and Harshit Rana claimed one wicket each.
Earlier, India posted 190/7 in their allotted 20 overs. Wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan top-scored with 49, while opener Abhishek Sharma contributed 43 and captain Shreyas Iyer added 37.
Youngster Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the youngest player to make his international debut for India, scored 14, while Tilak Varma provided a late flourish with an unbeaten 24, helping India reach a competitive total.
England’s Sam Curran was the pick of the bowlers, claiming three wickets to restrict India’s batting before the hosts completed the chase and moved 1-0 ahead in the series.
