T20 World Cup warm-up: Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul are class apart as India thump England

Rahul made batting look easy with six boundaries and three sixes in his 24-ball-51 while Kishan was retired hurt after a chiselled 70 off 46 balls that had three sixes apart from seven boundaries as India chased a target of 189 with an over to spare

KL Rahul’s brutal yet elegant fifty sealed the second opener’s debate while his opening partner Ishan Kishan also grabbed the opportunity as India warmed-up nicely with a seven-wicket win over England in the opening practice match ahead of the T20 World Cup.

Rahul made batting look easy with six boundaries and three sixes in his 24-ball-51 while Kishan was retired hurt after a chiselled 70 off 46 balls that had three sixes apart from seven boundaries as India chased a target of 189 with an over to spare.

Rahul rocks

In a game where result was secondary, Rahul’s touch would have certainly made skipper Virat Kohli pleased as punch as he hit some breathtaking sixes off Chris Woakes and also treated Mark Wood with disdain.

Kishan, who might have to sit out if he is not playing as an opener, did his case no harm once Rahul was gone as he punished the spinners, including a dazzling six, coming down the track off Adil Rashid.

India in the first game ticked some boxes that includes two senior pacers Jasprit Bumrah (1-26) and Mohammed Shami (3-40) hitting the straps straightaway with some fast and accurate deliveries.

Bhuvi off target

The third angle to this ‘triangle’—Bhuvneshwar Kumar, however, consistently missed the length giving away 54 runs in four overs. Kohli (11) didn’t score much but that would be least of concerns for the Indian team.

Rishabh Pant (29 not out, 14 balls) smashed the bowlers, while Suryakumar Yadav (8 off 8 balls) did look a bit scratchy during his brief stay. Hardik Pandya hit a few streaky shots in his 16 not out in 10 balls.

Brief scores
England 188-5 in 20 overs (J Bairstow 49, Moeen Ali 43*, L Livingstone 30; M Shami 3-40) lost to India 192-3 in 19 overs (I Kishan 70, KL Rahul 51, 
R Pant 29*) by 7 wickets

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