England Knock Out India in Twenty20 showdown
;)
;)
England defeat India at Twenty20
England edged a step closer to reaching the semi-finals of the cricket World Twenty20 after they defeated India in a gripping battle at Lords yesterday.
England took the game by 153-8 over India’s 150-5, winning the game by a mere three runs. England will now take on the West Indies for a place in the semi-finals. England started the game poorly but when Kevin Pietersen stepped up to bat he revived the hopes of his team with a stand-out display of 46 runs from 27 balls.
Ryan Sidebottom, named man-of-the-match, took the bowling reigns for the final over and ensured that India failed to gain the 19 runs needed for victory. India’s batsmen Yusuf Pathan managed to hit a six and a four in the final over but it wasn’t enough as Sidebottom succeeded in keeping them at bay.
The atmosphere in the stadium was slightly hostile as the Indian fans loudly voiced their disapproval for the England team. However, as England Captain Paul Collingwood explained to The Times this only served to spur England on: “We got booed at the home of cricket by the India fans, which was a bit strange, so that gave us a bit of motivation”.
India’s captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni blamed the loss on poor batting: “We have chased 60 in six overs before with Yuvraj and me, but we lost it in the middle and because we didn’t bat well”.
England now journey to The Oval where they will come against the West Indies and as both teams aim to reach the semis, Collingwood told the Press Association that the familiarity between the sides may play to England’s advantage: “The two teams certainly know each other very well because we’ve been playing each other for the last six months but I think it might work to our advantage”.
