Suryakumar, Pandya star as India level the series

A team batting first have finally won a game in the ongoing Twenty20 International series between India and England. The likes of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli all failed to fire, while Washington Sundar too had a rare bad game. There were also a couple of close and controversial calls that went against Kohli and Co. but the Men in Blue managed to hold their nerve and defeated England by eight runs in the fourth T20I to level the series 2-2 in Ahmedabad on Thursday (March 18).

Now, let's talk about the positives. 

Suryakumar Yadav (31-ball 57) finally got a chance to showcase his skills in international cricket and the stylish right-hander lit up the empty stadium with his exquisite strokeplay. Suryakumar crafted a stunning fifty before Shreyas Iyer (18-ball 37) chipped in with a fiery cameo to propel India to an above-par score of 185/8 in 20 overs. 

In response, Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes kept England in the game before Jofra Archer took the match to the final over. Shardul Thakur looked clueless in the first half of the over but bounced back well to win the game for India. Thakur finished with figures of 3/42 but it was Hardik Pandya who stole the show in the second innings. The all-rounder was outstanding with his change-ups and took 2/16 to help India defend a total despite the ground being covered with a lot of dew. 

'SKY' IS THE LIMIT FOR SURYAKUMAR

Earlier, Ishan Kishan had to miss out because of a niggle, which meant India had to stick with the opening combination of Rahul and Rohit. With two right-handers at the crease, England once again started with Adil Rashid but Rohit smoked him for a maximum off the very first delivery, becoming the first Indian batsman to do so. In the process, Rohit also completed 9000 runs in T20s. The right-hander didn't allow Rashid to settle in, but the battle was always going to be against the two pacemen - Archer and Mark Wood.

The tearaway seamers once again troubled Rohit and out-of-form Rahul with their pace and it was Archer who gave England the first breakthrough. The Indian vice-captain was undone by a leg-cutter, as he was caught and bowled for a run-a-ball 12. Meanwhile, Suryakumar's first scoring shot in international cricket was a maximum off Archer, as the right-hander looked set from the word go. He then tapped Chris Jordan past short third man and started to put some pressure on England.

Suryakumar then showed his range of shots against Rashid, sweeping him for a boundary, before lofting him over extra cover for his second maximum. The 30-year-old turned the momentum in India's favour in the space of three-four overs but England bounced back pretty quickly by getting rid of Rahul (17-ball 14) and Kohli (1) in quick succession. Rahul looked way out of touch and eventually fell to Ben Stokes, while Kohli failed to read Rashid's loopy wrong 'un and ended up getting stumped.

Suryakumar lost a couple of senior partners but that didn't hamper his concentration. He kept the scoreboard ticking and brought up his fifty with a superb cut shot. The right-hander from Mumbai became the fifth batsman from India to score a fifty on his debut T20I innings. Suryakumar greeted Sam Curran with an outstanding ramp shot but was dismissed on the very next delivery. He tried to replicate the shot but was controversially caught at deep fine leg by Dawid Malan. The replays suggested that the ball might have touched the ground but the third umpire didn't have enough evidence to overturn the on-field decision. 

Suryakumar crafted six fours and three sixes in his knock, but the onus was now on Rishabh Pant and Co. to give India a late flourish. The wicketkeeper-batsman kept finding occasional boundaries but it was Shreyas Iyer who took the attack to England bowlers. Playing for his spot in the XI, Iyer announced his arrival with an authoritative cover drive and didn't look back from thereon. Iyer first slammed Curran for two boundaries in an over and then did the same to Wood.

Pant was knocked over by Archer for a 23-ball 30 but Iyer carried on. Jordan failed to get his line and length right in his last over and Iyer and Pandya made the most of it. The right-arm seamer leaked 18 runs but Wood (1/25) bowled a terrific 19th over, giving away just seven runs and also getting rid of Pandya (8-ball 11). Iyer's fiery cameo, studded with five fours and a six, came to an end in the final over as he became Archer's third victim. Archer finished with figures of 4/33 but Shardul Thakur (4-ball 10*) managed a couple of boundaries to get India past the 180-run mark.  

GO 'SLOW'!

The hosts started with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Pandya and the former started the proceedings with a maiden over. Pandya too kept hitting the length as England could only score two runs in the first two overs. It was Roy who managed to break the shackles by glancing Bhuvneshwar for a boundary before Jos Buttler smashed him for a six over deep square leg. However, before Buttler could do any further damage, the wicketkeeper-batsman was undone by Bhuvneshwar's superb slower delivery. Buttler, who scored a match-winning 52-ball 83* in the third T20I, was caught at mid-off for just 9. 

Pandya too was brilliant in the powerplay with his change-ups and didn't allow England to get off to a flying start. England only scored 31 in the first five overs before Roy smacked Washington for two fours and a six in the final over of the powerplay to give England some momentum. Playing only his second T20I, Rahul Chahar knocked over Malan (17-ball 14) who was trying to reverse sweep him. Kohli then brought Pandya back into the attack and the all-rounder did the job for his team as he got rid of dangerous Roy (27-ball 40). 

Bairstow struggled to get going at the start but Stokes came out all guns blazing. The flamboyant all-rounder blasted Washington for a four and six to get the ball rolling before Bairstow too joined the party. The latter clobbered Washington for two fours and a six in his last over and turned the tide in England's favour. The offspinner had a horrible outing as he conceded 52 runs in four overs - his most expensive spell in T20Is. The two put on 65 runs off 36 deliveries before Chahar had Bairstow (19-ball 25) caught at point.  

With 54 needed off 30, the onus was on Stokes and Eoin Morgan to get England home. It was extremely difficult to operate with a wet ball but Thakur dismissed Stokes (23-ball 46) and Morgan (4) on consecutive deliveries to put India in a commanding position. England needed 23 in the final over and Archer (8-ball 18*) put India on the backfoot by slamming Thakur for a four and a six on consecutive deliveries. The next two deliveries were wides but Thakur didn't surrender and gave away just one run in the last three deliveries to get the job done.