A fluent half-century by Abhishek Sharma and a captain’s knock from Shreyas Iyer guided India to a competitive 189 for 7 against England in the opening T20 International of the five-match series on Wednesday.
After winning the toss, India opted to bat but suffered an early setback as opener Sanju Samson was dismissed by Saqib Mahmood, who induced an outside edge that was safely taken by Tom Banton at point.
The visitors were reduced to 6 for 2 soon after when Ishan Kishan was run out following a mix-up with Abhishek Sharma, leaving India in early trouble.
However, Abhishek and skipper Shreyas Iyer steadied the innings with an aggressive 82-run partnership for the third wicket, shifting the momentum decisively in India’s favour.
Abhishek launched a fierce counterattack, taking on England’s pace bowlers Luke Wood and Saqib Mahmood with a series of powerful strokes. He raced to his half-century in just 20 balls, eventually scoring 59 before being trapped leg-before by Sam Curran.
Shreyas Iyer anchored the innings with a composed 68, registering his ninth T20I half-century and his first as India’s T20I captain. He ensured India maintained the scoring rate after Abhishek’s departure.
Late contributions from Shivam Dube, who remained unbeaten on 42, provided the finishing touches as India posted 189/7 in their allotted 20 overs.
For England, Saqib Mahmood was the standout bowler, claiming 3 wickets for 33 runs, while Sam Curran chipped in with the crucial wicket of Abhishek Sharma.
Brief Scores:
India: 189/7 in 20 overs (Abhishek Sharma 59, Shreyas Iyer 68, Shivam Dube 42*; Saqib Mahmood 3/33).
