Tilak Varma produced an exceptional innings in a tough situation while wickets kept falling around him and managed to hold his nerve in India’s famous two-wicket win against England in the second T20I at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Saturday.
The last-over win gave India a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.
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THE TILAK VARMA SHOW
Varma’s (72 not out of 55 balls) skilfully exploited the pace battery of English bowlers and steered India to their target, with the home side concluding at 166 for 8 in 19.2 overs.
The innings was particularly remarkable as the left-handed batter had minimal support from his partners, while the England bowlers maintained their momentum after securing breakthroughs at regular intervals.
Jofra Archer proved particularly costly, with Varma targeting him specifically, striking four sixes against the Sussex bowler, the fourth bringing up his fifty, as Archer conceded 60 runs in four overs besides claiming Sanju Samson’s (5) wicket.
The southpaw’s remarkable shot, sending the ball over deep fine leg for six against Brydon Carse (3 for 29), demonstrated his exceptional batting skills.
SHAKY START TO THE CHASE
India faced tense moments at the start of their run-chase before Varma’s steadfast batting guided them to victory.
Opener Abhishek Sharma (12) began India’s innings brilliantly, striking three boundaries against Archer in the opening over. However, Mark Wood’s pace caught him on the back foot and the review of the LBW decision by the batter stayed in favour of Wood.
The situation shortly deteriorated to 19 for 2 with Samson’s departure.
A swift 39-run partnership between captain Suryakumar Yadav and Varma alleviated some pressure, taking the score to 58, but Carse dismissed Suryakumar (12), who played onto his stumps.
The English pace attack capitalised on the opportunity, as India lost Dhruv Jurel (4) and Hardik Pandya’s (7) wickets and were left struggling at 78 for 5.
THE COSTLY DROP
Washington Sundar capitalised on his early fortune when Adil Rashid dropped him at mid-on off Wood’s bowling. He went on to strike Wood for a six and two fours in quick succession, helping in bringing the required run-rate in manageable space.
However, Sundar’s innings (26 off 19) came to an end when he attempted to guide Carse towards third-man, only to have his stumps disturbed.
At that stage, India were struggling at 116 for 6, but found resilience through Varma.
ENGLAND ‘SPUN OUT’ AGAIN
After India won the toss and opted to bowl, England captain Jos Buttler showed resistance, but his fellow English batters faltered against the Indian spinners.
Buttler (45 off 30 balls) displayed his class with some brilliant shots, including a sequence of 4, 6, 4 against Arshdeep Singh, who had already dismissed Phil Salt in his opening over.
Salt’s attempt to pull the left-arm pacer fell short as Sundar, who came in for the injured Nitish Reddy, took the catch near the square leg boundary.
Sundar found success when Ben Duckett’s reverse sweep was caught by Jurel, who replaced the injured Rinku Singh.
The pull shot proved to be problematic for England batters throughout the evening, with both Buttler and Liam Livingstone falling while attempting it.
India’s vice-captain Axar Patel (2 for 32) capitalised on England batters’ aggressive approach.
The left-arm spinner’s strategy of bowling into the pitch, combined with the surface grip, made it difficult for batters to control their shots.
Buttler, whose aggressive batting had helped England reach 58 for 2 in the Powerplay overs, was caught by Varma, while Livingstone was dismissed when he was caught by substitute fielder Harshit Rana.
Carse, who replaced Atkinson in the line-up, displayed aggression with a quickfire 31 from 17 deliveries, including three sixes. However, his promising innings ended in a run-out after a mix-up with Archer.
Another notable moment of England’s batting show came in the form of Brook’s dismissal. Despite starting well with a six against Varun Chakravarthy (2 for 38), Brook’s innings was cut short.
Chakravarthy’s clever variation with a back-of-the-hand delivery proved too good for Brook, who failed to read the ball as it crashed into his off-stump.
