NEW DELHI: India’s decision to bat first in the T20I opener against England has surprised many. With cloudy skies and rain around, most teams preferred to bowl first after winning the toss at the Riverside Ground in Chester-le-Street on Wednesday.However, the Indian captain Shreyas Iyer chose to bat, and former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik believes there is one major reason behind that decision – the recent 2-0 T20I series defeat against Ireland.
‘There’s the Irish hangover’
India opted to go first in the two T20Is against Ireland but failed to chase down the targets. They lost the first game by 34 runs and the second by just one run.Karthik feels the defeats have influenced India’s mindset against England.“India, choosing to bat, is a good decision, although, obviously, there is a bit of time around the corner always… The general tendency is to chase totals,” Karthik told Cricbuzz.“It was a bit of an awkward night here because it was raining all the time around, but I think the Ireland hangover was there a bit. So, India decided, ‘let’s not chase and get ahead’,” he added.
The game was abandoned after rain
India’s plan looked promising as they posted a competitive 189/7 in 20 overs before heavy rain brought the match to an early end.The rain started towards the end of India’s innings and got heavier. With just over 40 minutes left before the cut-off time for five games, the umpires stopped the game.Shreyas Iyer led from the front with a 47-ball 68, while the opener Abhishek Sharma scored 59. All-rounder Shivam Dube gave the latter an unbeaten 42 off 21 balls.The second match of the five-match T20I series will be played in Manchester on July 4.
Iyer has crossed 5,000 international runs
The match also became a personal milestone for Shreyas Iyer, who completed 5,000 international runs for India during his knock of 68. He reached the landmark with an innings that included six fours and a six at a strike rate of over 144.So far, Iyer has scored 5,031 runs in 147 international matches at an average of 39.61 and a strike rate of 96.06. His tally included six centuries and 37 half-centuries, with a highest score of 128 not out.In Tests, he scored 811 runs in 14 matches at an average of 36.86, including one century and five fifties.ODIs remain his most successful format, with 3,035 runs in 79 matches at an average of 45.98, including five centuries and 23 fifties.In T20Is, Iyer scored 1,184 runs in 54 matches at an average of 30.38 and a strike rate of over 135, with nine fifties and a highest score of 74 not out.