2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by India in the 3rd T20I vs England ft. Washington Sundar's promotion

Team India's rampaging run in the shortest format hit a minor snag as they lost to England by 26 runs in Rajkot on Tuesday, January 28. The Men in Blue still hold a 2-1 lead in the five-match series and are only one win away from another bilateral triumph.

It was far from a perfect display from India, who were found wanting in the batting department. Suryakumar Yadav would've been happy with the total his bowlers restricted the visitors but with the pitch getting slightly slower and offering more turn, England were able to choke the home side in the middle overs.

Suryakumar and company also made a couple of tactical blunders that cost them heavily. On that note, here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by India in the third T20I against England.

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#3 Mistake - Hardik Pandya didn't show enough intent

India v England - 3rd T20I - Source: Getty

Hardik Pandya came to the crease at No. 5, and while India were three down inside the powerplay at the time, he didn't show nearly enough intent. The former skipper doesn't seem to have bought into the team's uber-attacking approach as he meandered along, causing the required run rate to rocket.

Hardik scored just 22 runs off his first 25 balls, playing barely any attacking shots and securing just one boundary. Things didn't get much better in the second half of his knock despite a couple of sixes, with the lower-order batters having too much to do as a result of his slow pace.

This approach hasn't worked for Hardik in the past, and he needs to kill chases earlier. He arguably has neither the range nor the temperament to pull off what MS Dhoni once could.

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#2 Masterstroke - Suryakumar Yadav's bowling changes were smart

India v England - 3rd T20I - Source: Getty

In the first innings, India did well restricting England to under 175. Suryakumar Yadav shuffled his bowlers well, with a couple of calls in particular standing out.

After Liam Livingstone came to the crease, Suryakumar tossed the ball to Abhishek Sharma, who eked out a tight four-run over. Livingstone and Harry Brook were in no position to take risks at that point, and with both batters having clear weaknesses against left-arm spin, it was a smart move by the Indian skipper.

Suryakumar also held Varun's last two overs back for the English lower-middle order batters, who have struggled to pick him throughout the series so far. The spinner feasted in that phase, picking up four wickets to completely derail the visitors' batting.

Suryakumar's bowling changes have been commendable since he took over as India's T20I skipper.

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#1 Mistake - Washington Sundar's promotion didn't make any sense

Australia V India - Cricket Test Press Conference - Source: Getty

Gautam Gambhir is known to be a supporter of Washington Sundar's ability across formats, but the all-rounder currently isn't a finished product in T20Is. And without realizing that, the Indian think tank promoted him in the batting order ahead of Dhruv Jurel and Axar Patel.

Sundar, as expected, struggled. He collected only six runs off the 15 balls he faced, and with the pitch offering turn, England found it easy to curtail his stroke-making. By the time the left-hander was dismissed, India were in serious trouble, with the required run rate spiraling out of control.

The situation was perfect for either Axar or Jurel. In essence, India misused not just Sundar but others in the middle order. Gambhir's tactics will be watched closely going forward.