New Delhi: In the third T20I match against England at the Niranjan Shah stadium in Rajkot, Hardik Pandya, the prominent all-rounder for Team India, displayed his frustration after being dismissed in a critical moment. He expressed his anger by shouting and throwing his bat, as India’s chances of victory diminished with his exit from the game.
— Drizzyat12Kennyat8 (@45kennyat7PM) January 28, 2025
The dismissal took place in the 19th over, as the Indian team needed an impressive 41 runs from the last 12 balls. Jamie Overton varied his bowling speed, which caused Hardik Pandya to misjudge the delivery, resulting in him slicing the ball to long-off, where the England captain, Jos Buttler, easily caught it. Pandya scored 40 runs off 35 balls, hitting two sixes and one four.
The 31-year-old player had intentionally denied Dhruv Jurel a single from the last ball of the preceding over to maintain the strike for the next one. Nonetheless, this strategy did not work out as England went on to win by 26 runs, thus keeping the series competitive.
Pursuing a target of 172 on a favorable batting surface, the Indian team found themselves at 68-4 after eight overs. Nonetheless, the English bowlers effectively managed to reduce the run rate and secured regular wickets during the latter part of India’s innings.
England’s bowlers outperformed their Indian counterparts, delivering a strong performance. Overton stood out as the top bowler for England, finishing with figures of 3 wickets for 24 runs in 4 overs. Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse each took two wickets, while Mark Wood and Adil Rashid contributed with one wicket each.