India’s five-match T20I series against England was surrendered on Thursday with one game still remaining. The Shreyas Iyer-captained side suffered a crushing nine-wicket defeat in the fourth fixture at Bristol. This marks the second series loss under Iyer’s leadership as he continues to wait for his first victory as skipper. Following a rain-abandoned opener, England strung together three straight wins to wrap up the series. Harry Brook and Phil Salt both blazed commanding half-centuries as the hosts chased down India’s first-innings score of 158 for 7 in just 13.5 overs. Shreyas Iyer stood alone in the batting effort, crafting an unbeaten 80 off 49 balls, though it wasn’t enough to post a competitive total. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi struggled again, falling to Jofra Archer for 15 off 10 balls. Archer and Josh Tongue claimed two wickets apiece for England. England Wraps Up T20 Series With Dominant Performance Against India.
TOSS
India won the toss and elected to bat first.
PLAYING XI
England (Playing XI):
Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (w), Harry Brook (c), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Josh Tongue
India (Playing XI):
Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (w), Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Prince Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna
INDIA
India won the toss yet again, but England’s disciplined bowling unit held them to 158 for 7 despite a gritty unbeaten 80 from Shreyas Iyer. On a pitch that offered variable bounce and grip, England’s pacers consistently bowled hard lengths and were rewarded early. Archer sent Sooryavanshi packing for the second consecutive match, drawing a top edge with a well-directed short ball, while Tongue removed Ishan Kishan in nearly identical fashion to leave India wobbling at 32 for 2 in the fifth over.
Abhishek Sharma offered a brief spark with 16, but perished immediately after the Powerplay, skying an attempted slog straight back to Adil Rashid. India crawled to just 44 for 2 at the end of the first six overs — their most laboured Powerplay of the series — before slipping further to 48 for 3.
With the surface offering little for the strokemakers, Shreyas and Shivam Dube focused on knitting the innings back together. Their 53-run partnership steadied the ship, though it moved at a measured pace as England’s blend of spin and slower deliveries kept boundaries to a minimum through the middle phase. Will Jacks eventually prised them apart, foxing Dube with a crafty change of pace.
After a patient half-century, Shreyas suddenly shifted gears against Rashid in the 18th over, plundering 20 runs off the leg-spinner through two sixes and a four. In total, he accumulated 44 runs off just 16 balls against Rashid — the joint second-highest by an Indian batter against a single bowler in T20I cricket.
England wrestled back the momentum almost instantly. Tongue removed Tilak Varma with a slower ball shortly after the left-hander had cleared the fence, while Curran and Archer executed their variations expertly in the closing overs. India went boundary-less in the final two overs, scraping just eight runs and losing Washington Sundar and Axar Patel in the process. Archer capped the innings by running out Axar, leaving Shreyas stranded on an unbeaten 80 off 49.
ENGLAND
Chasing 158, India grabbed an early foothold when Arshdeep Singh prised out Jos Buttler in the third over, drawing an outside edge a delivery after the wicketkeeper had clubbed a straight six. At 22 for 1, India had a glimmer of hope, with Phil Salt taking 10 deliveries to get off the mark as the new-ball duo generated enough movement and awkward bounce to keep England somewhat in check.
Any prospect of a close contest was swiftly extinguished by Brook, who flipped the script with an audacious scoop six off Arshdeep before unleashing a string of inventive, expansive strokes. Salt eventually found his stride too, taking full advantage of a Prince Yadav no-ball before tearing into the seamers as England surged to 62 for 1 at the Powerplay.
India’s spinners offered little relief either. Brook savaged Washington Sundar for three boundaries and a six in a 19-run over, then brought up a blistering 21-ball half-century with another towering six off Axar Patel. Salt joined the onslaught shortly after, launching Axar over extra cover as their second-wicket stand ballooned past 100.
Salt brought up his fifty off 37 balls with a boundary off Prasidh Krishna, while Brook continued to stroke the ball effortlessly in all directions — mixing ramps, scoops and classical drives — finishing unbeaten on 79 off just 35 deliveries.
Brief Scores:
India 158/7 (Shreyas Iyer 80*; Jofra Archer 2-20, Josh Tongue 2-36) lost to England 159/1 in 13.5 overs (Harry Brook 79*, Phil Salt 59*; Arshdeep Singh 1-41) by 9 wickets.
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