Batting for the first time in international cricket, Suryakumar Yadav hit a classy 31-ball 57 to ensure India posted a competitive 185/8 in the fourth T20I against England here at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Thursday.
If Surya showed nerves of steel as he hit the first ball he faced - off Jofra Archer - for a six, Rishabh Pant (30) and Shreyas Iyer (37) played fearless cricket as the hosts looked in complete control with bat in hand. The score could have gone over the 200-run mark, but Archer's four-wicket haul restricted the hosts running away with the game.
Put in, Rohit Sharma made his intentions clear from ball number one as he smashed the first ball of the match bowled by Adil Rashid for a six over the long-off boundary. The first over saw 12 runs being scored and the other batter KL Rahul also opened his mark after registering two ducks in this series.
However, Archer and Mark Wood were able to create pressure in the next two overs and this brought about Rohit's (12) dismissal in the fourth over of the innings. Suryakumar announced his arrival in international cricket with style as he sent Archer into the stands off the very first ball. After the end of the sixth over, India's score read 45/1.
Suryakumar kept on attacking from one end, but Rahul (14) stayed in his shell and this brought about his dismissal, reducing India to 63/2 in the eighth over as the opener looked to hit out. In the very next over, Rashid had skipper Virat Kohli (1) stumped and the situation asked for the hosts to rebuild their innings. This was the eighth time in international cricket that Rashid got the better of Kohli.
The biggest turning point came in the 14th over of the innings as Surya (57) was sent back to the pavilion by Sam Curran. The right-handed batsman tried to play a ramp shot but Dawid Malan ended up taking the catch. Replays indicated that the ball might have hit the ground when Malan was taking the catch, however, as the soft signal was out, the third umpire stayed with the on-field call citing "lack of conclusive evidence".
In the final four overs, Iyer continued to march on, but he did not find much support at the other end, and Archer showed his class and in the end, the hosts were restricted to under the 190-run mark.
Brief Scores: India 185/8 (Suryakumar Yadav 57, Shreyas Iyer 37; Jofra Archer 4-33) vs England.
( With inputs from ANI )
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