India’s former wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik question the management of the Gautam Gambhir-led team after pacer Harshit Rana was promoted earlier Shivam Dube during India’s disastrous collapse in the third T20I against England at Trent Bridge. India’s chase of 202 quickly unraveled after Axar Patel was dismissed off the last ball of the fifth over, leaving the visitors reeling at 52/5. Instead of sending in Dube, the team management opted to promote Harshit Rana, a move that left him Karthik stunned while in the commentary. “Are you serious? Harshit Rana ahead of Shivam Dube? You can’t be serious,” Karthik said on air. Dube eventually came to the crease two overs later but failed to save the innings, scoring just two runs from four deliveries before being dismissed by Josh Tongue. Karthik admitted that he could not understand the decision to delay Dube’s arrival, suggesting that it raised questions about the team’s confidence in the all-rounder. “Didn’t they (team management) trust Dube enough to send him at this stage? Instead, they promoted Harshit Rana ahead of him. I’m not sure that’s the right way to go,” he added. The selection call came during one of India’s worst batting performances in the format. England amassed 201/7 after Phil Salt led the way with a blistering 70 off 44 balls, while Sam Curran chipped in with 41 from just 24 deliveries on a challenging Trent Bridge surface. India’s reply never gained momentum despite Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hitting two early sixes in his 13 from five balls. The visitors collapsed from 23/0 to 76 all out in just 11.4 overs, with Josh Tongue claiming 4/28 and Jofra Archer taking 3/29. The 125-run defeat was India’s biggest by runs in T20 internationals, surpassing their previous heaviest loss of 80 runs against New Zealand in 2019. It also marked India’s second-lowest total in the format. The defeat gave England a 2-0 lead in the five-match series after the opening match had been washed out. India have now lost their last four completed T20Is, following a 2-0 series defeat in Ireland. Captain Shreyas Iyer he described the performance as “atrocious” after the match and admitted his side needed to “completely get back to the table”. England captain Harry Brook praised his team’s display, saying: “We adapted well with the bat. To bring that into the bowling was fantastic.” India must now win the remaining two matches to avoid losing the T20I series.
