2nd T20I: Axar and Varun take two wickets each as England set India a target of 166

Chennai, Jan 25 (IANS) Spin duo of Axar Patel and Varun Chakravarthy took two wickets each as England set India a target of 166 after making 165/9 in second T20I at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday.

After being put into batting first, captain Jos Buttler was fluent again to top-score with 45, while Brydon Carse led a late counter-attack with 17-ball 31 as England put in a much-improved batting performance. But with the pitch being good for batting and dew setting in, though there’s something in it for bowlers, it remains to be seen if England have enough on board to avoid being 2-0 behind in the five-game series.

For India, Axar and Varun were the standout bowlers with 2-32 and 2-38 respectively, as the hosts’ bowled 14 overs of spin, the joint second-most their slower bowlers have bowled in a men’s T20I game. The start was great forthe hosts as Arshdeep Singh removed Phil Salt with a short ball which he pulled straight to deep square leg.

Buttler bossed Arshdeep in the third over by heaving him twice, before hitting in the gap through off-side to pick two fours and a six. Local boy Washington Sundar struck another blow in power-play as Ben Duckett looked to reverse-sweep his slower ball, but gave a top-edge to point.

While Buttler attacked by slamming Sundar and Ravi Bishnoi for six, Harry Brook dazzled by slog-sweeping and going inside-out against Axar for six and four respectively. But his promising stay was cut short by Chakaravarthy, who got one to turn in from outside off and castle Brook.

At the mid-point of the innings, Axar had the big fish when Buttler tried to go over mid-wicket, but was caught in the deep for 45 off 30 balls. The left-arm spinner struck again when Liam Livingstone went hard on the pull, but holed out to deep backward square leg.

Debutant Jamie Smith gave a good account of his foot movement by hammering two sixes and a four in his 12-ball 22, before lofting to long-off against Abhishek Sharma.

Carse stepped up by dancing down the pitch and using his crease well to hit three sixes and a four in his 17-ball 31, before he and Jamie Overton fell in quick succession. A boundary each from Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood ensured England got over the 160-mark.

Brief Scores: England 165/9 (Jos Buttler 45, Brydon Carse 31; Axar Patel 2-32, Varun Chakaravarthy 2-38) against India

–IANS

nr/