Faced with the prospect of a must-win encounter, India lost the toss on a typical slow and low Nagpur track. Visiting captain Eoin Morgan decided to bowl first so as not to burden his batsmen with the task of identifying the par score.
The hosts looked to build their way towards a competitive total by keeping wickets in hand. Contributions from three of their batsmen helped set a stiff target for England. Despite having to counter the dew, the Indian bowlers varied their pace smartly and clinched an exhilarating five-run victory to take the series to the decider.
Here’s how each Indian player performed in the nail-biting second T20I. All ratings are calibrated on a scale of 10.
Jasprit Bumrah – 9
After slipping in a quiet over to round off the Power Play, Bumrah was entrusted to deliver in the business stages of the match. What followed was a truly remarkable performance from the 23-year old pacer. Even as the pressure threatened to shoot through the roof, he maintained his composure admirably and outfoxed the England batsmen with his variations. The fact that he was able to successfully defend 8 runs in the final over should fill him with plenty of self-belief.
Ashish Nehra – 9
Amidst all the pre-match talk of dropping him for an extra spinner, Nehra showed his experience by picking up three crucial wickets. When Sam Billings made his intentions pretty clear, he pulled the length back and induced a top-edge. The left-armer then proceeded to outwit Jason Roy by using the sluggish bounce. He shared the pressure overs with Bumrah and made his mark by getting rid of the well-set Ben Stokes.
KL Rahul – 9
Following a string of low scores, the elegant right-hander finally found some form on a difficult batting surface. He began rather sedately but slowly got into his groove to punish the loose deliveries. Particularly severe against the spinners, the opener paced his innings to precision. If not for his belligerent 47-ball 71, India would have struggled to post a competitive total.
Manish Pandey – 8
Even as the commentators kept insisting that Dhoni should have been promoted up the order, Manish played his part with a handy knock. Despite not getting his timing right, he rotated the strike on a regular basis and did not allow the scoreboard to stagnate. A massive six off Tymal Mills’ slower delivery went a long way in increasing his strike-rate.
Amit Mishra – 7.5
Kohli brought him into the equation only after the Power Play ended for the senior leg-spinner usually becomes a different bowler with fielders protecting the boundary. He provided the timely breakthrough of Morgan and could have prised out Stokes as well had he not overstepped.
Suresh Raina – 6.5
The left-hander had made a reasonable comeback in the previous game by batting quite fluently. This time around, the slow nature of the surface did not allow him to settle down. A mistimed slog sweep ended his uncomfortable stay at the crease. However, he did bowl his full quota of overs and conceded only 30 runs.
Virat Kohli – 5.5
Upon continuing to open the innings, the skipper showed a sense of urgency at the start of the innings. After an uncharacteristic slog just evaded a sprawling third man, he somehow survived a plumb leg before appeal. He responded with a breathtaking back-foot six but soon perished to a slower ball from Chris Jordan. A braver captain might have kept either mid-on or midwicket even during the last few overs.
Yuzvendra Chahal – 5
Despite coming into the game on the back of an impressive spell in the previous one, Chahal could not hit quite the ground running. He generated more flight than required and was duly dispatched into the stands on three occasions.
MS Dhoni – 5
Coming into bat during the 18th over, the wicket-keeper batsman could not get going from the outset as the England bowlers just kept taking the pace off the ball. As he often does, the veteran took the responsibility to face the final few deliveries. But, he was castled by Jordan off the very last ball of the innings.
Hardik Pandya – 5
With the bat, Pandya did not have much to do apart from sacrificing his wicket for Dhoni to retain the strike. Surprisingly, he was not given even a single over by his skipper.
Yuvraj Singh – 2
With conditions not in his favour, the southpaw scratched around against England’s spin duo of Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali. Despite being on the positive side of an umpiring howler, he failed to capitalise and surrendered to a delivery that drifted into him.
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