Team India sealed the five-match series against England as they triumphed by 15 runs at the MCA Stadium in Pune on Friday, January 31. The final encounter of the rubber, to be played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday, February 2, will now have no consequence on the outcome of the series.
The fourth T20I was a back-and-forth affair, with both teams having a real chance of coming out on top. The Men in Blue won't have been too happy with their display but still had a number of promising signs present themselves in the contest. They will take heart from those as they continue their rebuild under Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir.
On that note, here are three big positives for India from their win in the fourth T20I against England.
#3 Ravi Bishnoi got back among the wickets
Ravi Bishnoi endured a rough start to the series as he picked up just one wicket in the first three matches. In a welcome sign for India, the leg-spinner struck form under pressure and registered three scalps, including the big ones of Ben Duckett and Jos Buttler.
Bishnoi is one of the country's most talented T20 bowlers and needs to be backed through his rough phases. Moreover, his presence allows India the flexibility to use the likes of Varun Chakaravarthy and Arshdeep Singh across phases.
Bishnoi's performance would've greatly boosted India, who may have considered dropping him after the first three matches.
#2 India won despite losing three wickets inside two overs
Saqib Mahmood's triple-wicket maiden broke the back of the Indian top order early in the fourth T20I. Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav were all back in the hut, thanks to some poor shot-selection and smart planning from the visitors.
India lost three wickets inside the first 12 balls of their innings but still managed to post a decent total. That was largely thanks to Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube, whose twin fifties took the Men in Blue to 181/9. They managed to play an aggressive brand of cricket through the innings and weren't bogged down by the early wickets for too long.
India are still finding their feet in the format amid their current transition phase, and so far, their response to adversity has been admirable.
#1 Harshit Rana finally made his T20I debut
The circumstances surrounding it were strange, but Harshit Rana finally got the chance to make his T20I debut for India. It's been a long time coming for the fast bowler, who has been part of a number of shortest-format squads without being handed his maiden cap.
Rana immediately impressed, using his pace and bounce to set up the England batters before delivering some potent off-cutters that dipped and moved laterally. The young pacer finished with three scalps and bowled an excellent penultimate over that fetched Jamie Overton's wicket to effectively seal the deal.
Rana is expected to be an integral part of India's white-ball teams going forward, and the fact that he's finally off the mark is a major positive for the side.
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