England won the toss and chose to bat first — but their start was far from ideal. Both openers fell cheaply, piling on early pressure. Then stepped in Dawid Malan and Harry Brook, steadying the innings with stylish stroke play and quick runs. In no time, England raced to 70 inside the powerplay.
But India struck back! Ravindra Jadeja dismissed Malan (32), and Shardul Thakur removed Brook, swinging the momentum. Just as England looked to rebuild, Ravichandran Ashwin produced pure magic — dismissing Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali (first ball), and Sam Curran (first ball) to claim a hat-trick! The crowd erupted as England collapsed dramatically. Despite late hitting from Rashid and Jordan, they could only post 116/8.
India’s chase began in style with Yashasvi Jaiswal smashing a six off the very first ball. But the reply quickly turned shaky — Jaiswal was run out, Gill fell first ball, and Rohit followed soon after. At 22/3, the pressure was immense.
Enter Shreyas Iyer — calm under fire, then explosive with his strokeplay. His 46 off 21 balls revived the chase, even as Rahul fell to Rashid. But Woakes delivered another blow, removing Iyer and Jadeja in quick succession, leaving India reeling.
With the game slipping away, Ashwin once again rose to the occasion. Adding crucial runs alongside Thakur, he carried India to the brink. In the final over, with 5 needed off 2 balls, a wild overthrow from Buttler sealed England’s fate.
India clinched a nail-biting win, with Ashwin the undeniable hero — a sensational hat-trick and a vital 31 off 17* with the bat. He deservedly claimed Man of the Match, as India celebrated a memorable victory and handed England their first home defeat of the series.