Varun Chakraborty showed his spin-bowling skills in the first T20I of five-match series between India and England in Kolkata. His two wickets rattled England's batting line-up, extending India's dominance in the match. In addition Arshdeep SinghWinning early, Varun's accuracy has cemented India's dominance in the game.
Varun Chakravarthy's double strike to rock England
In the seventh over of the game, Varun showed his unique skills to score a double that stunned England. He was the first to fall Harry Brookwho showed promise with a blistering 17 off 14 balls, including two fours and a six. Varun fooled Brook with a wrong'un that came in and spun hard, past the pad, after taking a lean side from the bat, to hit the stumps. Brook, playing for a straight delivery, was replaced by a sharp turn and an unfortunate edge, ending what seemed to be the defining feature of the game.
Two balls later, Varun produced another stone to remove Liam Livingstone to the duck. The delivery, a right-hander, is loaded and bounced with speed. Livingstone, anticipating a turn that never came, collided with the wrong line, leaving his stumps shaking. Accuracy and guile in Varun's bowling played havoc with England's middle, leaving them reeling at 65/4. These two runs show Varun's ability to outthink the batsmen under pressure, and turn the tide in India's favour.
Here is the video:
Clash of wood โ
Two more wickets โ
Varun Chakaravarthy has picked up two! ๐๐
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England's first match in Kolkata against India
The first ten overs of England's innings included a ferocious batting from India. England lost Phil Salt for a duck in the opener to Arshdeep, who continued his brilliance with the dismissal Ben Duckett soon after, leaving the visitors reeling at 17/2 for the third time. If Butler then he took control, showing his aggressive intent with the boundary lines. His unbeaten 48 in 30 matches, laced with two fours and a six, led the innings between the early hurdles.
Arshdeep set the tone with his line and length, finishing his three overs with impressive figures of 2/10 at an economy of just 3.33. Varun ably supported him, picking up 2/16 in his three overs, clearing England's middle order. Ravi Bishnoi he kept his pressure on, scoring just six runs in his opening over. Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel they were expensive but played supporting roles as England struggled to get forward from the power play. In the middle, England reached 77/4with Buttler tying the innings. The Indian bowlers will look to capitalize on their momentum in the remaining overs to restrict the visitors from a low threat.