England vs India 2018, 2nd T20I – Who Said What

The Sophia Oval in Cardiff had a different look from the kind of wicket we had at Old Trafford. There was some grass on the surface with bounce, though it gripped a bit but there was pace as well. This was a move to negate the threat of the Indian spinners and at the end of 40 overs, one would say it did work in favour of England. Chasing India’s 148, they won the match by 5 wickets to level the series 1-1.

It was Eoin Morgan who won the toss this time and asked India to give them a target. The Men in Blue had the worst possible start as their top three failed all at once. For Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina, the task was to first stabilize the ship and then initiate rebuilding. Raina contributed 27 from 20 and Kohli then had another stand with MS Dhoni.

The skipper was out for 47 on the first ball of the 18th over. By then India just had 111 runs on the board for the loss of 5 wickets. It was Dhoni and Hardik Pandya’s late flourish that helped India get close to a competitive total.

England had a similar start with the top order getting starts but Alex Hales got in there and stuck to the task. Jonny Bairstow also had a much better game and hit Kuldeep Yadav for a couple of biggies. The star from the last match went wicketless and was hit for 34 in his quota.

Eventually, England needed 12 from the last over and Hales hit the first two balls for a six and a four to make it a matter of formalities.

India captain, Virat Kohli said:

When you lose 3 wickets in the first 6 overs for 30 runs it’s difficult to come back. I thought a partnership would get us to 145, and that would have been competitive. England made good use of the wicket which had some extra bounce. We were pushed back initally in the first six.

Our powerplay was not good enough, and the score in the end reflects that. You do consider everything into account, like the pitch, etc. We did well and we knew it would be difficult for England to chase down 149, and I think they had the partnership we didn’t to close it off in the end.

They played Kuldeep worked really well. It’s a cruel format for the bowlers, Umesh was fantastic as well, and so was Bhuvi, but unfortunately he couldn’t finish it off. We gotta brush it aside and move onto the next game.

England captain, Eoin Morgan said:

To come back from Old Trafford, we played quite well. When there is bounce in the wicket there is certainly a chance to take wickets upfront, and we did that. Willey did well and Jake Ball was great on debut. The momentum does ebb and flow, and the side that grabs the moment will definitely win the game.

Alex was fantastic today. We normally play spin well, and the guys had good confidence coming into the series and they stuck to the plans and executed extremely well today.

Man of the Match, Alex Hales said:

It was much-needed, the series-decider for us in terms of staying in it. Nice to right the wrongs of last match, personally and team-wise. I’ve never faced Kuldeep before, had to look at a bit of footage to come up with a plan and follow it which we didn’t do last game.

The long-term goal is the 2020 World T20, and getting a spot in the side is good enough. Plunkett, Willey, they can all bat really well as well. Bristol will be a cracker, as these are two teams at the top of their games, so we’re in for a show on Sunday.

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