England v India: Eoin Morgan helps hosts win T20 thriller Twenty20 international, Edgbaston: England 180-7 beat India 177-5 by three runs Scorecard England rounded off their international summer with a thrilling three-run victory over India in their one-off Twenty20 international at Edgbaston. The match went to the final ball but India captain Mahendra Dhoni failed to hit the six that would have won it. A blistering 71 off 31 balls from captain Eoin Morgan had lifted the hosts to an imposing total of 180-7. Virat Kohli put India on course with 66 but fine death bowling by Harry Gurney and Chris Woakes sealed Englands win. Eoin Morgans seven sixes equalled Chris Gayles record for a Twenty20 captain. Morgans fifty was the first by an England captain in T20s since Paul Collingwoods 57 against South Africa five years ago Ajinkya Rahane was the first Indian and the fifth fielder overall to take four catches in a T20 innings With 26 runs required from the last two overs and expert finisher Dhoni at the crease, India appeared favourites. But Gurney, playing only his second T20 international, bowled a tight penultimate over to restrict the tourists to nine. Dhoni smashed the first delivery of Woakess final over for six only to turn down two singles. It left India needing five from the final ball for victory or four to force a Super Over. When the skipper picked out Moeen Ali at deep square leg, England were able to celebrate a nail-biting victory to the disappointment of the vast swathes of India fans in the stands. We got a very good score, but felt India would be hard to stop, said Morgan. Woakes, Finn and Gurney held their nerve - they were exceptional. India get a lot of support up here, but hopefully the home fans are going home happy. Ive gone through tough times, but always come out on the right side. The belief was there. The riveting contest marked the end of a tour in which England fought back from 1-0 down to win the Test series 3-1 but were then heavily beaten by the same scoreline in the one-day series. England were indebted to Morgan, whose return to form after a disappointing one-day series will have delighted coach Peter Moores as he plans towards the Sri Lanka one-day tour in November and December, and next years World Cup. The Dublin-born left-hander smashed seven sixes and three fours as England pummelled 81 runs from their final five overs. Morgans knock reinvigorated an England innings that was in danger of collapsing when Joe Root was out for 26 to leave the hosts on 85-4 in the 12th over. Surrey opener Jason Roy nonchalantly reverse swept his second ball in international cricket for four but could only manage another four runs before pushing Mohammed Shami to Ajinkya Rahane at cover. Moeen Ali fell for a duck, Alex Hales was brilliantly caught by Rahane for 40 and Root lashed debutant spinner Karn Sharm to deep midwicket for 29. Ajinkya Rahane (left) took four catches during Englands innings Jos Buttler lacked his characteristic fluency as he laboured to 10 off 15 balls, but Ravi Bopara (21 not out) teamed up with Morgan to fire England to an imposing score. India overcame the early loss of Ajinkya Rahane - bowled round his legs by Moeen - with a partnership of 79 between Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan (33). Kohli struck nine fours and a six in his first half-century of a difficult summer, but after Dhawan had been bowled by Woakes, he holed out to boost Englands chances. Suresh Raina was bowled by a Harry Gurney yorker for 25 and Ravindra Jadeja ran himself out for seven. That left Dhoni as Indias best hope - but for once even he could not drive his team over the line. I missed two balls that I could have hit over the boundary, but hitting 17 in the last over is difficult, said Dhoni. It was a good chase, 180 is a tricky score in T20 cricket. We gave away too many runs at the death, but bowled well in the middle overs. Overall, its been a good tour for us. The atmosphere in the dressing room has been good. England captain and man of the match Eoin Morgan: We held our nerve really well. We got a very good score, but felt India would be hard to stop. Woakes, Finn and Gurney held their nerve - they were exceptional. Bowling short suited the conditions. We found that the fuller ball was easy to hit. We went to what we thought they should have bowled. India get a lot of support up here, but hopefully the home fans are going home happy. Ive gone through tough times, but always come out on the right side. The belief was there. Shaw Post believes it was great to see England Cricket end the summer in style as they started the summer badly by losing the Test series against Sri Lanka. They then came back to slaughter India in the Test Series 3-1. In the ODI series it was a tale of what might have been as England were beaten well by India 3-1. But the England Team ended the summer on a high by winning this match in style. The England Cricket Team can now rest up for the the next few months with the satisfaction of knowing that they look to have got their ruthlessness back in Test Match Circuit. They will also know that there are a few things that need to work on in the One Dayers but hopefully they will learn from their mistakes so they can be more consistent on a regular basis. They dont have much to worry about it T20s as they seem to be very consistent at the moment.
Posted on: Sun, 07 Sep 2014 19:00:54 +0000
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