Hosts have secured the series
It got nervy in the fourth and deciding T20I, twice when Saqib Mahmood struck with a triple-wicket maiden and then Phil Salt and Ben Duckett started in explosive manner but hosts India held on for a 15-run win which saw them lock in the series 3-1 with one game to go.
Ahead of the fifth and final T20I between India and England, here’s our match preview and predictions.
Barring Abhishek Sharma, the Indian top order continued to struggle with Sanju Samson falling to the pull shot once again while the Men in Blue’s captain Suryakumar Yadav’s horror run in the series continued. After being pegged back early on with a triple strike that saw India struggling at 12-3, it was some lower order heroics from the all-rounders, Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya which got India to 181. With the ball, it was Ravi Bishnoi finally announcing himself in the series before Harshit Rana in his T20I debut (as a concussion substitute) killing England’s hopes with a triple strike late on.
For the visitors, the series might be lost but the English team have put up a better fight in the last two games and would want to carry that momentum into the ODI series. Phil Salt finally got going in the series as he took apart Arshdeep Singh early on while Ben Duckett tore into the Indian bowlers, giving England a flyer. England fell to the similar issue once again as the middle over spin attack saw them unable to navigate Varun Chakravarthy or Ravi Bishnoi as barring Harry Brook and the openers, none of the batters were able to cross double digits. With the ball, Saqib Mahmood was the stand-out performer as his triple wicket maiden saw Indian struggling at 12-3. England failed to capitalise on a strong start early on as they let India go from 79-5 to 181 but Mahmood’s early burst would be something the visitors will take as a big positive.
The series finale will be at Wankhede, which should bring about plenty of runs and expect the hosts to wrap up the series with another win in what should be a high-scoring encounter.
Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma, Phil Salt, Jos Buttler, Suryakumar Yadav, Harry Brook, Tilak Vama, Hardik Pandya, Brydon Carse, Varun Chakravarthy, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer
Venue: Pune
Winners Prediction: India
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