During a fierce encounter at the MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai, India landed a thrilling two-wicket victory on England in the second T20I to secure a 2-0 lead in the five-match series. Chasing a target of 166, India overcame a difficult start, thanks to a composed and match-defining knock. Tilak Varmawho kept his cool to take India over the line with just four balls to spare. The game was marked by brilliant individual performances, intense death over drama and a multitude of strategic battles, making it an unforgettable contest.
England innings: Jos Buttler, Brydon Carse anchor amid middle-order woes
After being put into bat, England posted 165/9 in their allotted 20 overs. Despite a difficult start with early layoffs Phil Salt And Ben Duckettcaptain Jos Butler presented his class with 45 out of 30 balls, supported by fireworks from Brydon Carsewho quickly smashed 31 out of 17 balls. Contributions from Jamie Smith (22 out of 12) and Liam Livingstone (13 off 14) provided stability, but frequent wickets prevented England from capitalizing in the middle overs. Varun Chakravarthy And Axar Patel delivered some hard-hitting spells, taking two wickets each, while the defensive effort, including a brilliant outing from Carse, kept England’s total in check.
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Chasing India: Tilak Varma’s masterclass under pressure
India’s chase started on a shaky note as Abhishek Sharma And Sanju Samson fell early, leaving the team at 19/2. Captain Suryakumar YadavQuickfire’s 12 from 7 balls provided some momentum, but his dismissal further complicated the chase. Tilak, however, rose to the occasion with a sensational unbeaten 72 off 55 balls, mixing caution and aggression. His innings featured four boundaries and five towering sixes, ensuring that India remained in the race. Washington Sundar contributed with 26 vitals from 19 balls, while Ravi Bishnoi‘s calm nine-point cameo sealed the deal in the finale. Despite the disciplined bowling of Carse (3/29) and Adil Rachid (1/14), England failed to defend their total.
Here’s how Twitter reacted:
Ok, Tilak, that was really impressive! 🙌🏼
– Kévin Pietersen🦏 (@KP24) January 25, 2025
This shot from Tilak is worth more than 2 of his tons in SA. The responsibility he showed here was incredible. Attacked at the beginning, then he played according to the situation and guided the team home. Quality shot.
-arfan (@Im__Arfan) January 25, 2025
Tilak and Bishnoi today 🥵 pic.twitter.com/65pKddZEEy
– Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) January 25, 2025
Match winning shot ✅
Handling pressure ✅
Decision making✅
Tempo & choice of match ups ✅✅Tilak Varma🤝🤝 #INDvsENG
-Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) January 25, 2025
In Tilak, we trust! 💪🏻 #WhistlePodu #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/FOlPexSpYH
– Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) January 25, 2025
Excellent innings from Tilak Verma. Another example that demonstrates his great temperament and situational awareness. A difficult skill to learn and much more important than other batting skills.
– Gurkirat Singh Gill (@gurkiratsgill) January 25, 2025
Excellent innings from Tilak. Got Ind back on track from 78/5, kept his cool till the end. Taking 19 points from the 16th over against Jofra Archer was the turning point. Well done @TilakV9 👏🏻 #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/k1mgVFUbeJ
– Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) January 25, 2025
🐺 𝚰𝐍𝐃𝚰𝐀 ⚔ 𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐒 🇮🇳#INDvENG #MumbaiMeriJaan #MumbaiIndians pic.twitter.com/RwXSCMiX7i
– Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) January 25, 2025
Lo and behold, Tilak Varma won it for India! 🥵🔥🔥
This man Tilak Varma single-handedly played a crucial knock for India by scoring 72 runs off 55 balls including 4 fours 5 sixes against England in the 2nd T20I, what a knock, an unforgettable knock in T20I for him. 👏#TilakVarma #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/sHmbv1a5kT
– Riya Kapoor (@Riyakapoor78) January 25, 2025
No surprise for the ‘Player of the Match’ award for the 2nd T20I 🙌#TilakVarma #INDvENG #cricket pic.twitter.com/rImJNpJz1T
– CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) January 25, 2025
One of Indian cricket’s brightest young stars showed why he is so highly rated. This of #TilakVarma was not only a sleeve of great capacity but of magnificent temperament.
– Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) January 25, 2025
Tilak has skills, technique and jazba to stay till the end. Much improved and consistent scores winning runs as well.👏👏 #INDvsENG
– Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) January 25, 2025
