England beat India black and blue in the semi-finals of the ICC T20 World Cup
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England vs India ICC T20 World Cup
There is a difference between defeat and destruction. Watching Team India collapse to a nerve-numbing loss against England in the semi-finals by ten wickets in the ICC T20 World Cup was painful. The way Englishmen Jos Buttler and Alex Hales tormented the Indian attack and tore it to shreds was disdainful.
If the power play showed aggression and arrogance, the two unbeaten batters showed that the Indian bowling was club class, as they won by 10 wickets.
There may have been a few surprises when Buttler won the toss and asked India to bat first. In hindsight, it turned out to be a good decision as they restricted India to a meagre score of 168. On a wicket at the Adelaide Oval where the flow of runs was easy to square off the wicket, England showed such raw aggression and intent, the Indian bowling, pace, and spin were rendered impotent.
At the post-match conference, skipper Rohit Sharma talked about handling pressure in a big match. To be sure, the captain himself was a flop show in this edition and he should not be critical of his teammates. His own batting was shaky as if affected by some serious technical issues.
Rohit may have started well but to register just 27 runs in a big match like this on Thursday was very meagre. At the other end, vice-captain KL Rahul was also in “true” form — unable to fire big in an important match. Between these two leaders, they have let their team down, miserably.
Had it not been for the superlative knocks from Virat Kohli, who slammed his fourth half-century of the tournament, and Hardik Pandya, India may not even have got to the total of 168. Looking at India and England, one thing is clear, the rivals had a game plan and played like true professionals. In contrast, India was like flat, old beer. Just no fizz.
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Hales and Buttler whack India’s bowling attack with aggression bordering on brutality at the Adelaide Oval
Defending a meagre total was going to be a challenge. Yet, what was appalling was the bowling at a friendly pace from Bhuvi and Shami which allowed the English marauders to go hammer and tong. The way Hales and Buttler batted defined class and how to master the conditions. This was an effort that reflected professionalism and how to keep the hunger intact on the big stage.
If today, Pakistan will be mocking India, you have to face it. If the Indian fast (or medium-fast) bowlers were as ordinary as bowlers in a club tournament, the spinners were simply pedestrians. R.Ashwin was over-trying the variety in each delivery and Axar Patel’s bowling action looks as if he has forgotten the fundamentals.
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Time and again, Indian bowling has faced problems in this edition of the ICC World Cup. Arshdeep was the messiah, so to say, in previous matches. Today, even a master effort from him would not have helped as Hales and Buttler were in a mood where they wanted to whack the ball all over the park.
Hales spoke of how much he loves being in Australia. Sadly, it was the Indian cricket team at the receiving end today as Hales launched into a blitzkrieg. As for Buttler, he has shown that leading the side comes to him naturally. Buttler has the presence of mind and unflappable temperament to control the proceedings. For those who thought Eoin Morgan was the best captain for England in the white ball format, Buttler looks as effective.
You could be sure, England will now fancy their chances against Pakistan in the final at the MCG on Sunday. The script-writers who were harping on India versus Pakistan must be tearing their hair now. Sadly, the Indian cricket team let down billions of fans around the globe. Mourning time? Yes. This is not what one expected from the Men in Blue. Today, they were beaten black and blue by England.
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S Kannan
(382 Articles Published)