India Suffers a Clean Sweep Against England

India and England faced off at The Rose Bowl in Southampton for the final match of their five-match T20I series on Saturday (July 11). Shreyas Iyer's team failed to secure a win, ending their disastrous tours of Ireland and England on a low note. England secured a resounding 56-run victory, successfully defending a mammoth target of 258 as India was restricted to 201/8. With this win, England clinched the series 4-0 and dethroned India from the No. 1 spot in the ICC T20I rankings, claiming the crown for themselves. The series saw the first match washed out, followed by English victories in Manchester (by 4 wickets), Nottingham (by 125 runs), Bristol (by 9 wickets), and now Southampton.

India's run chase started poorly, with Abhishek Sharma falling to Jofra Archer for just 3 runs. Sanju Samson (27) hit some crisp shots but was dismissed by Sam Curran. Shreyas Iyer (28) and Ishan Kishan then built a 55-run partnership for the third wicket before Liam Dawson removed Iyer. Ishan Kishan smashed a brilliant 56 off 35 balls (7 fours, 2 sixes) but was dismissed by Adil Rashid, leaving India struggling. Tilak Varma fought hard with a quickfire 53 off 25 balls (3 fours, 4 sixes), but the lower middle order, including Shivam Dube (14), Suryansh Shedge (7), and Axar Patel (3), failed to deliver. Sam Curran picked up three wickets, while Adil Rashid took two.

Earlier, England's innings started with a hiccup as Phil Salt (6) fell to Prasidh Krishna in the second over. However, Jos Buttler and captain Harry Brook unleashed carnage, stitching together a colossal 233-run partnership off 102 balls for the second wicket. Buttler reached his century in just 51 balls and went on to score 131 off 64 balls, featuring 12 fours and 8 sixes—his second T20I hundred. He was eventually dismissed by Shivam Dube in the 19th over. Harry Brook remained unbeaten on 95, missing out on his century but hitting 8 sixes and 4 fours in his spectacular knock.

For this match, India brought in Sanju Samson and Suryansh Shedge for Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Washington Sundar, while England replaced Rehan Ahmed with Liam Dawson. Out of 35 T20Is played between the two nations, India has won 18, England 16, and one ended in no result.