Nagpur: Shreyas Iyer (62, 33b, 3×4, 5×6) and KL Rahul (52, 35b, 7×4) smashed sublime half-centuries to propel India to 174/5 in the series-deciding third and final T20I against Bangladesh here Sunday.
It was a maiden T20 half-century for Iyer and a sixth one for Rahul. It was also to be noted that Iyer’s was dropped before he was able to open his account.
Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah followed the template set in the series by winning the toss and opting to field. India made an unexpected call by dropping a bowler in Krunal Pandya for middle-order batsman Manish Pandey.
Sent into bat, the hosts were dealt a body blow in the second over when pacer Shafiul Islam (2/32) removed skipper Rohit Sharma (two), who tried to whip a length ball but only managed to get an inside edge on to the stumps.
Rahul joined Shikhar Dhawan (19) in the middle in an attempt to steady the ship and with both the batsmen under pressure having not made an impact in the first two games, the situation provided them an ideal platform to deliver.
However, Dhawan could not last long after hitting four boundaries, mistiming a slog to be caught in the deep by Mahmudullah. Struggling at 41/2, it could have been three down at that stage if Aminul Islam had not dropped a regulation catch off incoming batsman Iyer at backward point.
Taking advantage of the life he got, Iyer along with Rahul gave India the much-needed boost as the dup added 59 runs for the third wicket.
Rahul in full flow is always a treat to the eye and that is what the Nagpur crowd witnessed. He completed his fifty off 33 balls before being dismissed, leaving India at 94/3 in the 13th over.
Iyer, who made a sedate start to his innings, went ballistic after Rahul’s departure. He was especially brutal against the spinners and hit three sixes over long-on off Afif Hossain.
Rishabh Pant (six), who has copped a lot of criticism of late both for his batting and wicket-keeping, disappointed once again when the team needed him to provide the big hits. Pandey (22 not out), playing his first game of the series, came up with welcome boundaries in the death overs to take the total beyond 170.
Brief Scores: India 174/5 in 20 overs (Shreyas Iyer 62, KL Rahul 52; Soumya Sarkar 2/29, Shafiul Islam 2/32) vs Bangladesh
PTI