Chahal sinks England as India clinch series 2-1

BANGALORE, India: Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal claimed six wickets to demolish England and hand India a 75-run series-clinching win in the third and final Twenty20 international in Bangalore on Wednesday.

Chahal recorded his T20 best of 6-25 to help skittle out England for 127 in 16.3 overs. The visitors, chasing 203, lost eight wickets for eight runs in the space of 18 deliveries.

The 23-year-old Chahal became only the second bowler in T20 cricket to get six wickets in an innings after Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews achieved the feat twice with figures of 6-8 and 6-16.

The attacking spinner started England’s batting rot in the 14th over of the innings, getting dangermen Joe Root (42) and skipper Eoin Morgan (40) on consecutive deliveries to derail the tourists’ chase.

Root and Morgan had kept the chase alive with their 64-run third-wicket stand but the innings fell apart after their departure.

Chahal got three wickets in his fourth over to rip through the England middle and lower order as India won the series 2-1.

Earlier scintillating half-centuries from Suresh Raina and Mahendra Singh Dhoni helped set up the win as India posted 202 for six after being put into bat.

India rode on the 55-run third-wicket partnership between Raina (63) and Dhoni (56) to thwart the England bowling attack after an early wicket fall.

The hosts lost skipper Virat Kohli for two after a terrible mix up with Lokesh Rahul (22) saw the star batsman being run out.

Rahul was bowled by Ben Stokes but the left-handed Raina carried on the power hitting as he recorded his fourth T20 fifty with a six off leg-spinner Adil Rashid.

Dhoni, who smacked five fours and two sixes in his 36-ball blitz, joined forces with Raina as the duo carted the England bowlers to all parts of the ground.

Score Board

England won toss

India

*V Kohli run out        2

K L Rahul b Stokes    22

S K Raina c Morgan b Plunkett        63

†M S Dhoni c Rashid b Jordan         56

Yuvraj Singh c Buttler b Mills 27

R R Pant not out       6

H H Pandya run out   11

Extras (b 4, lb 3, w 8)         15

Total (6 wickets; 20 overs)  202

Did not bat: A Mishra, J J Bumrah, A Nehra, Y S Chahal

Fall: 1-4, 2-65, 3-120, 4-177, 5-191, 6-202

Bowling: Mills 4-0-32-1 (4w); Jordan 4-0-56-1 (2w); Plunkett 2-0-22-1; Stokes 4-0-32-1 (2w); Ali 4-0-30-0; Rashid 2-0-23-0

England

J J Roy c Dhoni b Mishra      32

S W Billings c Raina b Chahal          0

J E Root lbw b Chahal          42

*E J G Morgan c Pant b Chahal       40

†J C Buttler c Kohli b Bumrah         0

B A Stokes c Raina b Chahal 6

M M Ali c Kohli b Chahal       2

L E Plunkett b Bumrah         0

C J Jordan st Dhoni b Chahal 0

A U Rashid not out    0

T S Mills c Kohli b Bumrah    0

Extras (lb 2, w 3)     5

Total (all out; 16.3 overs)    127

Fall: 1-8, 2-55, 3-119, 4-119, 5-119, 6-123, 7-127, 8-127, 9-127, 10-127

Bowling: Nehra 3-1-24-0 (1w); Chahal 4-0-25-6; Bumrah 2.3-0-14-3; Mishra 4-0-23-1 (1w); Pandya 2-0-17-0; Raina 1-0-22-0 (1w)

Result: India won by 75 runs

Series: India won the 3-match series by 2-1

T20I debut: R R Pant (India)

Man of the match: Y S Chahal (India)

Umpires: A K Chaudhary and Nitin Menon. TV umpire: C Shamshuddin. Match referee: A J Pycroft (Zimbabwe)