England vs India 2018, 3rd T20I: Hits and Misses

The third and final T20I of the series saw India and England battle it out in the decider. After winning the toss Virat Kohli decided to chase. The surprise at the toss was Kuldeep Yadav not being selected in the side.

England openers started the juggernaut from the very first over taking full advantage of India’s inexperienced bowling line up. The openers laid up a solid foundation but England’s middle order again couldn’t capitalize to their full potential. They gave India a competitive total of 199 to chase. Hardik Pandya was the pick amongst the bowlers as he took 4 wickets giving away 38 runs.

It was then a Rohit Sharma special in the second innings as he scored a magnificent ton, not giving England even a sniff at victory. It was Hardik again in the second innings who came and played a match-winning cameo and took India home with 8 balls to spare.

With this victory, India won the 3 match series 2-1 thus having a perfect start to their English summer.

Among all the celebrations, let us have a look at some hits and misses from the game.

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#1 Hit: Jason Roy

England’s dynamic opener, Jason Roy, after missing out in the first 2 matches, came to the party in the series decider as he smashed 67 runs off just 31 balls. He clobbered 4 fours and 7 maximums scoring the joint second fastest half-century for England in T20Is.

Roy found the middle of the bat from the get go and put pressure on every Indian bowler. His innings came to an end with a soft dismissal when he tried guiding a slower ball down to the third man, gloving it to the keeper.

Jason Roy’s blitz at the top of the order gave England the foundation for a good first innings score and thus he was definitely a hit in this match.

#2 Hit: MS Dhoni

Certainly the best wicketkeeper at present, MS Dhoni proved himself again behind the stumps. He became the first wicketkeeper to take 5 catches in an innings in T20Is. The highlight among those was the first one, which was a skier; MS called for it and took it before he ran into the stumps.

Dhoni also became the first wicketkeeper to take 50 T20I catches. The silver lining on the catches was the run out which MS produced on the last ball of the innings. He smartly took off the right glove and hit the bull’s eye when batsmen were trying to steal a bye.

Watching MS behind the stumps was a definite joy in this game as he took away many records alongside the catches.

#3 Miss: Umesh Yadav

Umesh Yadav was selected in this Indian T20 side on the back of some excellent IPL performances. He got lucky to be a part of playing XI as India’s frontline bowlers got injured.

Umesh justified his selection with 2 brilliant performances but missed the opportunity in the third T20I as he gave away 48 runs taking only a solitary wicket.

He was taken to the cleaners by England batsmen as they smashed him all around the ground. Being a senior bowler a lot was expected from Umesh but he seemed to have an off day as almost everything he bowled was hit out of the park. Although the track was a batting beauty still the ace pacer was expected to bowl better lengths.

#4 Hit: Rohit Sharma

Form is temporary and class is permanent. Rohit Sharma, one of the best modern-day white ball cricketer in the world, proved every word of this statement true.

There were some questions being raised on Rohit’s place in the side but the Mumbaikar answered all of them in style as he smacked his third T20I hundred off just 56 balls. The innings was full of class and style, a typical Rohit Sharma innings. He hit 11 fours and 5 sixes and stayed till the end to see India through.

Rohit’s returning back to form is a blessing for team India because when the opener gets his eye in, there is hardly any other winner in the match.

#5 Miss: Shikhar Dhawan

The southpaw and one of the most dominating world players, Shikhar Dhawan failed to make an impact in the game and in the series. On a track which was a batting paradise, Dhawan had an unlucky dismissal as he hit a leg-side volley straight to the fine leg fielder.

This was Dhawan’s chance of scoring some good runs and getting back his form which he failed to capitalize. With Rahul batting like a wonder, the opener’s slot is up for grabs. Shikhar definitely has to score some runs otherwise the writing might be on the wall for a very good player.

#6 Hit: Hardik Pandya

Hardik Pandya displayed his all-around skills to perfection as he took 4 wickets and played a match-winning cameo scoring 33 off just 14 balls.

Firstly with the ball, Pandya bought India back in the game chipping in with 4 wickets which dented England’s hope of giving India an out of reach total. Later in the second innings, Hardik showed why he is among the best power hitters in the game as he smacked 4 fours and 2 sixes, scoring at a strike rate of 235.71.

The emergence of Pandya the bowler and the finisher is a very bright side for the future of Indian cricket as an all-rounder is an important part of India’s World Cup plans.

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Who do you think was the best player on the pitch tonight? Tell us in the comments below!