CHENNAI, India — In a thrilling performance, Tilak Varma anchored India’s innings with an impressive unbeaten 72 off 55 deliveries, guiding the team to a victory over England in the second T20 match held on Saturday.
Varma’s third half-century in T20 cricket came at a crucial time, as he helped save the team from a precarious position of 78-5 by the tenth over, successfully chasing down a target of 166 with four balls to spare.
India finished the game with a score of 166-8, following England’s innings of 165-9, and now leads the five-match series with a 2-0 advantage.
Opting to bowl first once again, India made a couple of adjustments to their lineup, bringing in Dhruv Jurel and Washington Sundar to replace the injured Nitish Reddy and Rinku Singh.
On the other side, England welcomed Jamie Smith and Brydon Carse back into the squad, filling in for Jacob Bethell and Gus Atkinson.
India’s batting struggled early on, with the pace attack unsettling their top order; Mark Wood dismissed Abhishek Sharma for just 12 runs, and Jofra Archer’s delivery took out Sanju Samson as he attempted a pull shot.
Skipper Suryakumar Yadav managed to hit three boundaries before being bowled by Carse in the sixth over.
The situation worsened for India when Jurel fell to Carse for 4, leaving the score at 66-4, and soon after, Hardik Pandya was caught on just 7 runs off Jamie Overton, leaving India reeling at 78-5.
Varma’s resilience shone brightly as he formed a vital 38-run partnership with Washington Sundar, who became Carse’s third victim in the 14th over.
Following a couple of wickets to spin, including the notable dismissal of Axar Patel, England appeared to gain momentum.
However, Varma countered Archer effectively in his closing over, and received support from No. 10 Ravi Bishnoi, who, while batting for 14 balls, scored 9 runs, including two boundaries.
In a tense final stretch, England entrusted Liam Livingstone with the penultimate over, needing 13 runs from the last 12 balls. Bishnoi’s boundary in that over significantly eased the pressure.
Varma showcased his finishing skills by securing the winning runs with two balls to spare, capitalizing on a game that had seemed firmly under England’s control.
Earlier in the day, England’s batting lineup faltered against the effective Indian spin attack.
Phil Salt struggled once again, falling early to Arshdeep Singh, who entered the match with spin bowling tactics right from the start.
The spinners collectively claimed six wickets, with Varun Chakravarthy leading the charge, taking 2 wickets for 38 runs in his four overs.
Jos Buttler held the England innings together with a solid 45 runs off 30 balls, striking two fours and three sixes. He partnered with Harry Brook to contribute 33 runs off 20 deliveries.
Unfortunately for England, Brook was bowled by Chakravarthy in the seventh over, shifting the momentum.
The critical turning point came in the tenth over when Buttler fell to Axar Patel, with Patel finishing with figures of 2-32 from his four overs, also taking out Livingstone for 13 runs.
In a sudden collapse, England lost their last seven wickets while adding just 98 runs to their total, though they did perform better than in the first T20 match.
Carse’s brisk 31 off just 17 balls, including three sixes, brought England past the 150-run mark.
The series continues with the third T20 scheduled to take place in Rajkot on Tuesday.
