2 Indian players who starred and 1 who flopped in the 1st T20I vs England ft. Varun Chakaravarthy

Team India got their five-match T20I series against England off to an excellent start. The Men in Blue clinched the opening game by seven wickets at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Wednesday, January 22.

Things have looked rosy in the shortest format for India under Gautam Gambhir and Suryakumar Yadav. The duo have done well to ensure that the momentum generated by the team's 2024 T20 World Cup win is capitalized upon.

Most Indian players did well in the series opener against Jos Buttler and Co., but there were a couple of small blips. On that note, here are two Indian players who starred and one who flopped in the first T20I against England.

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#3 Star - Varun Chakaravarthy

India v England - 1st T20I - Source: Getty

Ever since making his comeback to the Indian T20I side, Varun Chakaravarthy has been a class apart. The spinner turned in another memorable display in the first T20I against England, at a venue he knows inside out by virtue of his exploits for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League.

Chakaravarthy's googlies and ability to extract decent bounce at high speeds troubled the Indian batters. In the same over, he castled Harry Brook and Liam Livingstone to break the back of the England middle order. Later in the piece, he extinguished the last bit of the visitors' hope by having Buttler caught at deep square leg.

Chakaravarthy, who has turned his international fortunes around admirably, was rightfully adjudged the Player of the Match.

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#2 Flop - Suryakumar Yadav

England Tour Of India : India Practice Session Ahead Of First T20 Match In Kolkata. - Source: Getty

Suryakumar Yadav was perhaps the only Indian player who didn't make a notable contribution to the win in the first T20I against England. The right-handed batter walked in at No. 3 and didn't last very long.

Jofra Archer, who had been harrying the India openers with his pace and bounce, went pace off immediately after Suryakumar arrived at the crease. SKY tried to play a shot similar to his first scoring shot in international cricket but only managed a top-edge that was safely held by Phil Salt.

Suryakumar averaged just 26.81 in T20Is in 2024, and his first outing of the new calendar year didn't go to plan. The Indian skipper will want to get back to his prolific best at the earliest.

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#1 Star - Abhishek Sharma

India v England - 1st T20I - Source: Getty

There were concerns over whether Abhishek Sharma would be able to counter the high pace of the England fast bowlers, but the young opener passed the test with flying colors on Wednesday. Abhishek turned in one of the best performances of his short international career as he carted the ball to all corners of the Eden Gardens.

Abhishek was more than happy to hit on the up and picked apart anything in his arc. He accessed the short square boundaries well and threw the England bowlers off their plans by moving around in his crease. By the time the opener was dismissed, he had hammered the visitors into submission.

With Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill not playing a part in the series, Abhishek has been provided an excellent chance to nail down his case for a spot in the T20I side. If early indications are anything to go by, he's well on course to do just that.