The Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian cricket team finished the five-T20I series against England on a high on Sunday after a huge 150-run win in Mumbai. The result ensured that India wrap up the series 4-1. Abhishek Sharma was the star of the final match as he scored a 54-ball 135. Varun Chakravarthy was the Player of the Series with 14 wickets in five matches. However, Team India Fielding Awards went to someone else. While earlier, the norm was to give Fielding Awards after every match, this time an ‘Impact Fielder of the series’ has been given.
After the final match, fielding coach T Dillip said: “Phenomenal stuff. Fielding is not just about skill, it’s an attitude thing. When we are on the ground, we are not sure home many balls come our way but we can show awareness. Special mention to Varun. It’s just a start. We are giving this ‘fielder of the Series’ award for the consistency throughout the tournament.”
He then called upon captain Suryakumar Yadav to announce the winner. Yadav went to different players as suspense built up, and then finally awarded the medal to Dhruv Jurel.
Meanwhile, after the dominating series win, former all-rounder Irfan Pathan took a subtle dig at the England team after India shattered records at Wankhede to secure a resounding 150-run victory over the touring side.
In the final game of the enticing five-match series, India broke the shackles to script an emphatic win over England, concluding the series on a high note.
The five-match affair saw a couple of heated remarks from current and former English players. After India cruised to a comfortable 7-wicket victory in the series opener at Eden Gardens, Harry Brook made a comment that triggered India fans and forced a reaction from former cricketers.
Brook blatantly blamed smog in Kolkata, which made it hard for the England batters to pick India spinner Varun Chakravarthy during a press conference.
“Chakravarthy is an exceptionally good bowler. He is tough to pick, and actually, with the smog the other night, it was a lot harder to pick as well. Hopefully, the air is a bit clearer here, and we can see the ball a bit easier,” the England vice-captain had said as quoted from Wisden.
After India’s memorable success at Wankhede Stadium, Irfan took a cheeky dig at the English team. He hinted at Brook’s “smog” remark while congratulating India for an emphatic 4-1 series win.
“The score line of #INDvENG was Smog & trouble-free for team India well done boys,” Irfan wrote on X.
