England defeated India by four wickets in the second T20I to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series on Saturday (July 4) at Old Trafford.
Chasing 191 to win, the Three Lions reached home in 19 overs, thanks to Jacob Bethell's unbeaten 76 off 46 balls with five fours and as many sixes.
Speaking after being named Player of the Match, Bethell said testing himself against the strongest sides in world cricket is what drives him.
Having also impressed against India during the 2026 T20 World Cup semi-final, the southpaw reiterated that delivering against quality opposition makes performances all the more rewarding, while acknowledging the challenge posed by India's attack.
“I really enjoyed that semi-final (2026 T20 WC), although we couldn't get over the line. They're a high-skilled attack, it's just that I've played them on two pretty nice pitches. And, yeah, you want to do well against the best teams in the world. So, yeah, it's really pleasing to do so,” Bethell said during the post-match presentation.
England’s chase got off to a shaky start as Arshdeep Singh dismissed openers Phil Salt and Jos Buttler for ducks in the very first over, leaving the hosts reeling at 1/2.
Entering at No. 3, captain Harry Brook single-handedly flipped the pressure back onto India by smashing a breathtaking 39 off just 15 balls.
Following Brook's exit, Bethell teamed up with Tom Banton (39) to anchor a critical 67-run stand that kept England's required run rate entirely manageable.
Reflecting on England's approach to the chase, Bethell stated: “It worked out well in the end, but just going into bat two down, Brooky (Harry Brook), set the tone really well there. He flipped the momentum straight back on them. And, that made it easier for me to go out there and just give him strike to start and then it's a shame when he got out. But I thought Banton came in and that partnership we built, both of us would have liked to go on and finish that. But everyone just keep chipping in. And then, yeah, in those kind of chases, you're not going rapid the whole time, but a couple of big overs and then the game swings. So, yeah, it was one of them that just kind of got timed really well.”
India regained control in the middle overs as Arshdeep returned to dismiss Banton, while Varun Chakaravarthy removed Will Jacks for 9. However, in the 17th over, Bethell slammed Ravi Bishnoi for 29 runs to tilt the game in England’s favour.
Bethell initially intended to target the opposite end of the ground but unexpected match events—specifically a couple of free hits—forced him to change his strategy.
“If I'm honest, I probably would have targeted the other end more with my leg side, with the wind, but, and the shorter side. But, yeah, when, (there are) a couple of free hits and then bowler's down, so then you try and take him. So, yeah, that all worked out really well. And then, yeah, Jof (Jofra Archer) came in and finished it off,” he remarked.
Jacob Bethell stressed that England's batters adapted to unequal boundary sizes instead of targeting just one side.
“Yeah, I think so. I mean, the thing with playing on different dimensions is one side might be easier to hit sixes, but you can also score the same amount of runs, hit in the gaps that are bigger on that big side. So, yeah, it was just about being smart with that. And I thought as a batting group, we were really good at that on the whole,” he concluded.
(With IANS Inputs)
