CRICKET:England captain Eoin Morgan lamented his side's failure to capitalise on an excellent start following their five-wicket defeat to India in the first Twenty20 international in Pune yesterday.
The tourists seemed on course for a formidable total when Alex Hales (56) and Luke Wright (34) helped them to 89 for one after 10 overs. However, Yuvraj Singh’s introduction changed the course of the match, with the slow left armer accounting for the pair in successive overs.
England could only reach 157 for five, a total that was undermined by 10 wides as India cruised home with 13 balls to spare. “We got off to a great start. Alex Hales played tremendously well along with Luke Wright but in that middle period we failed to kick on and score,” Dubliner Morgan said.
Lost wickets
“That positivity wasn’t there in our batting and we lacked about 15 or 20. We never seemed to get going again. We continually lost wickets, which is a shame because the start we had, we were on for a good score. We always thought we were in the game. We lacked a small bit of discipline in our bowling but we were always up against it with that score on the board.”
It was a welcome return to winning ways for India, who have been pilloried for their 2-1 Test defeat against England. Mahendra Singh Dhoni has faced calls to resign as captain but led India over the line with a calm 24 not out from 21 balls. While he admitted England’s great start had left him feeling nervous, he saluted the efforts of Yuvraj, who also top scored for the hosts by plundering 38 from 21 deliveries.
