England chased down 191 in 19 overs to beat India by four wickets in the second T20I at Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester, taking a 1-0 lead in the five-match series on Saturday. Jacob Bethell anchored the successful chase with an unbeaten 76 off 46 balls as England finished on 191/6, overturning India’s 190/7.
The result mattered because India had put up what the match updates described as a “fighting total” after opting to bat first, and then struck twice in the opening over of England’s reply. But England’s middle-order recovery and a decisive late surge swung the game back in the hosts’ favour.
India set 190/7 after choosing to bat first
India posted 190 for seven in their 20 overs, with Abhishek Sharma leading the early scoring with 43 off 24 balls and Ishan Kishan adding 49 off 40. Skipper Shreyas Iyer also contributed 37 off 22 as India built a competitive platform.
A notable moment in India’s innings was the international debut of 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who made 14 off 10 balls before being dismissed. England’s left-arm seamer Sam Curran was the standout wicket-taker, finishing with three wickets for 33 runs.
India’s closing phase included a late push that took them to 190/7. The match updates noted that 17 runs and the wicket of Harshit Rana came off the final over of Jofra Archer, which helped India reach that total. Earlier in the closing overs, Axar Patel was run out for 2 off 3 balls following a throw from Jos Buttler, as India looked to squeeze extra runs late in the innings.
England’s chase: early strikes, then a counterattack
India’s defence began in ideal fashion. Arshdeep Singh struck with the first ball of the innings, removing Phil Salt for 0 (caught by Ishan Kishan) at 0/1 in 0.1 overs. Four balls later, Arshdeep struck again as Jos Buttler fell for 0 (caught by Varun Chakaravarthy) to leave England 1/2 in 0.5 overs.
Despite the early damage, England quickly found momentum. A costly third over from Arshdeep changed the tone: Jacob Bethell took a single off the first ball before Harry Brook launched into a sequence of boundaries. The over was recorded as 1, 4, 4, 6, 6, 6 for 27 runs, lifting England to 38/2 after three overs and bringing the chase back on track.
Brook continued at pace, and by 4.4 overs England were 51/3, but India struck back through a review. Axar Patel’s delivery was initially called wide, but India appealed for a catch behind, took it upstairs, and the decision was reversed. Brook departed for 39 off 15 balls, caught by Kishan off Axar.
England kept moving through the middle overs with Bethell and Tom Banton. At seven overs, England were 67/3 needing 124 from 78 balls, with Axar Patel delivering a tight over that went for six without a boundary. But England rebuilt, reaching 91/3 after 10 overs, with match updates noting Varun Chakaravarthy conceding 13 in that over as Bethell hit a six and Banton struck a four.
At 11 overs England crossed 100, reaching 103/3, and at 12 overs they were 115/3 with Banton hitting consecutive fours off Ravi Bishnoi. India then found a key breakthrough at 13 overs: Arshdeep removed Banton for 39 off 32 balls (caught by Tilak Varma) to make it 118/4, and the update framed it as a “huge breakthrough” that brought India back into the contest, with England needing 73 from 42 balls.
However, Bethell stayed in and England continued to chip away. Will Jacks was later dismissed for 9 off 8 balls, lbw to Varun Chakaravarthy at 15.2 overs, with the batter using a review unsuccessfully. That left England 133/5.
Bethell’s late surge seals it as England finish 191/6
The decisive phase came late in the chase, driven by Bethell’s acceleration. At 16.2 overs, Bethell reached his half-century in 39 deliveries, hitting two sixes off Ravi Bishnoi. The sequence included a back-foot no-ball, followed by a six on the free hit and another maximum. England were 157/5 at that stage and needed 34 runs in 22 balls.
Bishnoi’s next over proved even more costly. The match updates described it as an “extremely poor over” in which Bethell struck three sixes and a four, with two no-balls also included. Twenty-nine runs came off the over, taking England to 171/5 after 17 overs and reducing the requirement to 20 runs from 18 balls.
India did pick up another wicket at 17.4 overs when Harshit Rana dismissed Sam Curran for 7 off 5 balls, caught by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi at deep square leg, making it 179/6. But the chase was effectively in England’s control by then, and they completed the target in 19 overs.
England ended on 191/6, winning by four wickets, with Bethell 76 not out off 46 balls as the key figure in the chase and the match result giving the hosts a 1-0 advantage in the five-match series.
