Key events
WICKET! India 123-6 (Axar c Rashid b Archer 15)
Gone! Axar backs away and slices a low full toss straight into the hands of Rashid at short third.
In 2018, Rashid won the Thanks For Coming award in the Lord’s Test against India: he didn’t bat, didn’t bowl and didn’t take a catch. Today he has made a vital contribution in all three departments.
17th over: India 122-5 (Hardik 32, Axar 15) Wood starts with a wide to Hardik, who then whips the first legitimate delivery over wide long-on for an awesome six. Is this the Brobdingnagian over India need?
Not quite. Wood recovers admirably, pounding the ball into the pitch to concede only three from the next four deliveries. And though Axar crashes the last ball for four, a 14-run over still increases the required rate. India need 50 from 18 balls.
16th over: India 108-5 (Hardik 23, Axar 11) Axar slugs Carse’s final ball to cow corner for four, a superbly placed shot. Even with that it’s a good over for England – eight from it, which is exactly half the required rate. But T20 matches have been won from worse positions and England aren’t home yet.
Livingstone’s three sixes in four balls look pretty valuable now, as does the last-wicket partnership of 24 between Rashid and Wood
15th over: India 100-5 (Hardik 22, Axar 5) Pandya muscles Overton down the ground for the first boundary in eight overs. The substitute Bethell denies him another with a superb diving stop at deep backward square. A better over for India, 10 from it, but they are still well behind the rate. They need 72 from 30 balls.
“I estimate that the spectacular Suryakumar orbital edge went up nearly 45 metres in the air,” writes Brian Cox Withington. “Ignoring air resistance and lateral displacement for simplicity, and assuming a hang time measured at nearly 6 seconds (3 up 3 down) and approximating acceleration due to gravity g as 10 m/s/s:
“The formula for (vertical) distance travelled on the way down is s = ut + 0.5xgt^2 where initial velocity u at apex is zero.
“Note that there is no need to know initial ball speed off bat but I estimate it at 30 metres per second. Full working and preliminary sketches available at usual address.”
14th over: India 90-5 (Hardik 14, Axar 3) Even now, with the asking rate above two a ball, India take no risks in Rashid’s final over. Theer are four singles and a huge appeal for LBW when Axar is beaten by another delicious legbreak.
Buttler decides to risk England’s last review. It’s close but Axar might be outside the line. In fact it was doing too much and would have missed leg stump. Axar is not out and Rashid one of his finest T20 spells with 4-0-15-1. The wicket of Tilak Varma changed the game; since then India have scored only 22 in six overs.
13th over: India 86-5 (Hardik 12, Axar 1) Overton is struggling with the bat but England will accept golden ducks for the rest of his career if he keeps producing figures of 2-0-5-1.
Hardik is not out Yep, missing leg by a distance. Not England’s finest review.
12.5 overs: India 86-5 (Hardik 12, Axar 1) England review for LBW when Hardik is hit on the pad by a yorker from Overton. It was beautifully bowled but I suspect it’s missing leg.
WICKET! India 85-5 (Washington c Buttler b Overton 6)
Washington spoons Overton’s slower ball straight to mid-off to end a poor innings of 6 from 15 balls. His bat had no middle, particularly against Rashid.
If England aren’t careful they are going to win this game.
12th over: India 85-4 (Hardik 12, Washington 6) Washington is really struggling against Rashid. He survives a stumping referral after missing a slog sweep, but that’s one of three dot balls in the over.
Rashid has outstanding figures of 3-0-11-1. Washington, 6 from 14 balls, will surely have to attack one of the quick bowlers.
11th over: India 82-4 (Hardik 11, Washington 4) England are in a terrific position but will take nothing for granted, especially with Dhruv Jurel and Axar Patel still to come.
Jamie Overton tightens England’s grip with a fine first over. Only four singles from it; India need 90 from 54 balls.
10th over: India 78-4 (Hardik 9, Washington 2) Washington drives Rashid fractionally short of Overton running in from long off. Later in the over a gorgeous delivery bounces through the gate for four byes. Rashid appeals for LBW but England decide against a review. Good decision: it hit the pocket and would have bounced over the stumps.
That was another delightful over from Rashid; if only his shoulder was up to an Ashes tour.
“Another reason to give Rehan Ahmed a few games: we need to get him and Rashid working together so Rash can pass on some of his wisdom,” says Phil Harrison. “I agree with you – he’s one of England’s greatest ever white ball cricketers (surely England’s greatest ever white ball bowler?) and he’s going to leave an enormous hole.”
I’m sure Rehan is still learning loads in the nets, but nothing beats chatting in the middle. The good thing is that Rehan has time on his side. He’s still only 20; Rashid was 27 when his white-ball career got going in 2015.
9th over: India 72-4 (Hardik 8, Washington 1) India play low-risk cricket throughout Carse’s second over, allowing them to get their bearings before they push for the finishing line. They need 100 from 66 balls.
8th over: India 68-4 (Hardik 5, Washington 0) My word, that was a sensational piece of bowling from one of the greatest white-ball cricketers England have ever had. Even now, almost 10 years on from his recall under Eoin Morgan, he doesn’t quite the credit he deserves. He will when he’s gone.
WICKET! India 68-4 (Tilak b Rashid 18)
Gottim!!!! Tilak’s streak ends at 336 runs when he is cleaned up by a classic legbreak from Rashid. Tilak misread the length, played back when he should have been forward, and couldn’t react when the ball turned sharply to peg back middle stump.
7th over: India 62-3 (Tilak 14, Hardik 3) Liam Livingstone comes on for Archer (3-0-24-1). It takes two balls before Varma skips down to drive a flat, straight six.
Here’s a stat for you, and it’s insane. Since his last dismissal in a T20 international, Varma has scored 332 runs from 184 balls: 107*, 120*, 19*, 72*, 14*. Unsurprisingly, that’s a record among Test-playing nations.
6th over: India 51-3 (Tilak 5, Hardik 1) Suryakumar has captained beautifully all series but he remains short of runs, with 26 in three innings now. That’s a good Powerplay for England, who were 52 for 1 at the same stage; but then India don’t have to face Varun Chakravarthy.
WICKET! India 48-3 (Suryakumar c Salt b Wood 14)
Another big wicket for England! Suryakumar top-edges Wood into outer space – “that’s as high as I’ve seen a cricket ball go” says Kevin Pietersen on commentary – and Salt, who has only just taken over as wicketkeeper, runs towards short fine leg to take an excellent catch.
5th over: India 48-2 (Suryakumar 14, Tilak 4) Suryakumar sees that shot and raises it, lifting Archer’s first ball off middle stump and over short fine leg for six. That’s a preposterous shot. He uppercuts four more, both feet off the ground, and is denied another boundary by a fine stop from Rashid at mid-on. India need 124 from 90 balls.
4th over: India 35-2 (Suryakumar 1, Tilak 4) Tilak Varma, the matchwinner on Saturday, gets off the mark with a spectacular shot, charging Carse to flat-bat four through the covers.
Jamie Smith has gone off the field, with Jacob Bethell replacing him and Phil Salt taking the gloves. England said before the game that Smith had a calf niggle so presumably he’s compounded that.
WICKET! India 31-2 (Abhishek c Archer b Carse 24)
Jofra Archer takes a sensational catch to get rid of Abhishek Sharma! Abhishek had already hit two fours in the over – the first lucky, the second brilliant – when he backed away and launched Brydon Carse miles in the air on the off side. Archer backpedalled desperately towards the cover boundary, took the catch above his head and held on when his momentum knocked him off his feet.
3rd over: India 23-1 (Abhishek 16, Suryakumar 1) A good delivery from Archer is driven majestically over extra cover for four by Abhishek. He has looked frighteningly good at times in this series.
WICKET! India 16-1 (Samson c Rashid b Archer 3)
The early wicket that England needed. Samson, hurried by a short ball from Archer, cloths a pull straight to the backpedalling Rashid at mid-on. That’s a good bit of bowling.
2nd over: India 15-0 (Samson 3, Abhishek 10) Abhishek larrups successive boundaries off Mark Wood, a lusty drive over cover and a pull over mid-on. There are a couple of wides in the over as well, both to the right-handed Samson. Not the start Wood wanted, though he did look dangerous when he bowled a tighter line.
1st over: India 3-0 (Samson 2, Abhishek 1) Jofra Archer, who took some hammer in Chennai on Saturday, starts well here. He bowls wicket to wicket, a tactic that worked well for the Indian quicks, and concedes three singles.
In other news
“In other news,” begins Gary Naylor, “Farhan Ahmed (16), Rehan’s brother, is taking wickets with his off-breaks and made 90 in the U-19s Test in South Africa. It’s not if, it’s when, he plays for England and, given these travails in white ball, it has to be sooner rather than later. Remember the name!”
Remember the age!
India need 172 to win the series
The indecipherable Varun Chakravarthy was again too much for England. He bowled beautifully to take 5 for 24 and nobble England after a good start by Ben Duckett and Jos Buttler. The consensus in the commentary box is that England are at least 30 runs short.
20th over: England 171-9 (Rashid 10, Wood 10) England manage to bat out the overs, taking six singles, a two and a wide from Pandya’s last over. The last ball would have led to a run-out had the throw from long on not hit Wood on the back.
19th over: England 162-9 (Rashid 8, Wood 5) A clever little touch from Rashid, who uses his wrists to glide Shami through the slips for four. Wood sways out of the way of accidental beamer, which means a no-ball and a warning for Shami.
England ran a bye off that ball and Rashid fresh-aired the free hit. Even so, 11 runs from the over is a good effort for the last pair.
18th over: England 151-9 (Rashid 2, Wood 2) “Given that there’s a couple of matches left in what will be a dead rubber, should England rotate a few batters?” wonders John Starbuck. “Overton and Salt could be put out of their misery, but who would come in?”
They could experiment with Smith opening and Bethell at No6 but that’s not really McCullum’s style. Ultimately Salt is in their best XI so unless he is shot mentally (which I doubt, it’s only three innings) I’d keep him in. An alternative is Bethell at No7, though that is risky as well because it leaves you a bit short with the ball.
I’d like to see Rehan Ahmed play, more with the future in mind than the present. In the medium term they should think hard about picking Joe Root as a specialist for the 2026 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.
WICKET! England 147-9 (Livingstone c Jurel b Hardik 43)
It was fun while it lasted. Livingstone, trying to hit his sixth six, holes out to long-on to end a punishing innings of 43 from 24 balls. Would that it were enough for England.
17th over: England 146-8 (Livingstone 43, Rashid 0) Livingstone releases some frustration by slog-sweeping Bishnoi’s first two balls for six.
Then he turns down a single – which allows him to pull a rancid long hop for six more. Livingstone does take a single of the penultimate ball; Rashid knows what time it is and defends the final delivery.
16th over: England 127-8 (Livingstone 24, Rashid 0) What a delightful spell that was: 4-0-24-5.
WICKET! England 127-8 (Archer b Chakravarthy 0)
Varun Chakravarthy completes a five-for with the last ball of a glorious spell! Archer pushes outside the line to a ball that zipped through the gate to hit the outside of off stump. “Was that bowled?” said Archer, who looks clueless against Chakravarthy. He’s not alone in that.
