England captain Eoin Morgan said that he was surprised to see so much carry and the bounce on the red-soil pitch at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad after his team’s eight-wicket win over India to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match T20I series on Tuesday (March 16).
After England sent India to bat first, the hosts got a horrific start as they lost the first three batsmen, KL Rahul for a duck, Rohit Sharma (15), and Ishan Kishan (4) for just 24 runs inside the powerplay in the third T20I at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.
However, then India captain Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant brought the hosts back in the game by putting up the 40 runs partnership for the fourth wicket, but then the youngster was run-out after scoring 25 runs off 20 balls while trying for the third run during the 12th over followed by Shreyas Iyer’s wicket for just 9 runs and the hosts again lost the momentum against England.
As India was struggling on 86/5 in 14.3 overs, Kohli was then joined up by Hardik Pandya and they added crucial 70 runs for the sixth-wicket partnership, but eventually, the all-rounder lost his wicket in the last ball of their innings with the Indian skipper remained not out on 77 off 46 balls with the help of 8 fours and 4 sixes, as India posted 156/6 in the 20 overs on the board.
Morgan said at the post-match presentation: “The carry we saw throughout the whole game, it was surprising. Our guys don’t find it too hard to adjust. The first half of our bowling was exceptional. The wicket stayed similar. When there’s one short side, you don’t know what’s a good score. It’s just the dynamics of T20 cricket.”
The skipper also lauded Jos Buttler, who hit his career-best T20I knock of unbeaten 82-ball 53 to take England to a comfortable eight-wicket win over India in the third T20I, saying they are lucky to have a player of the class of the wicketkeeper-batsman in the side.
He signed off by saying, “Jos is a world-class player, we are very lucky to have him. He competes with the best when it comes to opening the batting. He’s a great leader within our group. He’s a great friend of mine. The words he said really warmed my heart and I am very grateful for that.”
(With ANI Inputs)
