2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by India in the 4th T20I vs England ft. Harshit Rana the concussion sub

India beat England by 15 runs in the fourth T20I at the MCA Stadium on Friday, January 31. With the win, the Men in Blue sealed the five-match series 3-1, ahead of the final game in Mumbai on Sunday. February 2.

For the most part, it was an encouraging performance from the hosts. They won despite being three down inside the first two overs and overcame an assault from Ben Duckett and Phil Salt in the second-innings powerplay.

At the same time, though, Suryakumar and company made a couple of tactical blunders that could've cost them heavily on another night. On that note, here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by India in the fourth T20I against England.

---

#3 Mistake - India's top-order batters exercised poor judgment in Saqib Mahmood's first over

India v England - 4th T20I - Source: Getty

Saqib Mahmood's first over saw him register a triple-wicket maiden. And while England must be commended for their strategies, the wickets had more to do with India's poor tactical awareness and judgment than anything else.

For the fourth game running, Sanju Samson was dismissed by a short ball aimed at his body. This time, it wasn't even that short, as he was cramped for room before finding a fielder in the deep. The opening batter should've given himself more time and tried to access different areas in the field.

Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav didn't give themselves enough time either. While the former charged down the track off his first ball and lost his shape, Suryakumar fell into a trap England laid out as he chipped one straight to a catching mid-on.

Mahmood was delighted as India gifted him three wickets on a platter. The match was nearly gone then.

---

#2 Masterstroke - India found a way to bring Harshit Rana in

India v England - 3rd T20I - Source: Getty

The rules are ambiguous, and the match referee's decision to allow the substitution was controversial. It's wholly understandable that England feel hard done by, with Harshit Rana being a better bowler than Shivam Dube.

However, as the rulebook currently is, a loophole exists. And India smartly found a way to exploit it, using Dube's knock on the helmet to hand Rana his maiden T20I cap in unexpected circumstances.

It was even more important for the home side as they were playing with just one specialist fast bowler in Arshdeep Singh. Rana, on his end, did his job to near-perfection as he sent down four threatening overs and tried to extract purchase from the Pune wicket with his off-cutters.

It's also interesting to note that making the rule tighter and fairer is a tough task. So going forward, more teams might be able to pull off smart heists like the one India did in the fourth T20I.

---

#1 Mistake - India got Rinku Singh and Axar Patel's roles mixed up

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

A feature of Gautam Gambhir's coaching era in India has been not defining the roles of key batters. Riyan Parag has been deployed as a finisher, and often, Rinku Singh has been sent up the batting order to bat inside the powerplay and through the middle overs.

In the fourth T20I, after India lost three wickets inside the first two overs, the time was ripe for the hosts to promote Axar Patel. Instead, they chose to use Rinku, who struck at just over 115 before finding a fielder in the deep off Brydon Carse.

It may have been a move to give Rinku some time at the crease, but India could've instead adopted a higher-risk approach through the middle overs and got the left-hander some balls to face at his ideal phase. Axar, who came to the crease late, faced just four balls. His batting hasn't been used properly at all.