Jos Buttler 's reign as England white-ball captain got off to a horror start as he was out for a golden duck while his side slipped to a 50-run defeat against India in the first T20I of the series.
Hardik Pandya produced a stunning all-round display for the visitors, striking 51 with the bat and picking up four wickets with the ball. After winning the toss and choosing to bat, returning captain Rohit Sharma set the tone for India with a quick-fire 24 off 14 balls.
Deepak Hooda and Suryakumar Yadav then picked up where their captain left off with a pair of scintillating cameos, blasting 33 and 39 respectively at strike rates of around 200. Pandya then proceeded to notch his first-ever T20 half-century for India, before England fought back well at the death to keep the visitors below 200.
However, England fell well short of their target as they were bowled out for just 148. Bhuveneshwar Kumar got India off to a perfect start, producing a beautiful inswinger to remove Buttler for nought in the first over.
England then slipped to 33-4 with Pandya removing Dawid Malan, Liam Livingstone and Jason Roy, before Harry Brook and Moeen Ali then proceeded to mount a fightback. The pair shared an excellent 61-run partnership, with Brook scoring an impressive 28 and Moeen top scoring with 36.
However, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal completely dashed England's hopes of winning when he removed them both in the same over. Chris Jordan did strike some lusty blows towards the end of the innings, but it was a comfortable win for India in the end by 50 runs.
Buttler's nightmare start
As England slumped to a 50-run defeat, things could not have gone worse for Buttler from a personal standpoint.
Not only did he fail to pick up a win in his first match since being named as Eoin Morgan's successor, he also got out for a golden duck in the very first over of England's innings.
"We've been outplayed today," Buttler reflected. "I thought India bowled fantastically well and we couldn't get back in the game from that point."
India's attacking mindset
During last year's T20 World Cup, India were criticised for their batting approach as they crashed out in the group stages. However, they were much more aggressive in this match, taking the attack to England and smashing 66 runs in the powerplay.
They may have lost a few early wickets in the process, but it is the kind of mindset which England adopted so successfully under former captain Eoin Morgan. And with such strength in depth, India could have similar success.
Rohit set the tone at the top of the order, before Hooda and Yadav played scintillating cameos and Pandya notched his half-century. Speaking after the match, Rohit said: "You have to make use of the six overs when the fielders are outside and there is an approach we want to take.
"Sometimes it comes off, sometimes it doesn't. That's why the sport is so challenging. All the players need to buy into it, the whole batting unit need to see which way the team is going."
Moeen's milestone
Moeen became just the tenth England player to make 50 T20I appearances and he celebrated by picking up 2-26 with the ball and top scoring with 36 with the bat.
He has been a massive part of England's white-ball revolution over the years and his all-round ability remains crucial to this team. Moeen bowled his two overs in the powerplay and removed both the openers, albeit going at an economy rate of 13.00.
He then came into bat with England 33-4 and proceeded to share an excellent partnership with the inexperienced Brook to try and drag his side back into the game. Although England ultimately lost the match, Moeen's individual display was impressive.
Jordan's quality on show
After a disappointing winter by his high standards, Jordan was the pick of the bowlers for England as he showcased his invaluable experience to keep India below 200.
A yorker specialist, Jordan adapted brilliantly to conditions, and instead hit hard lengths and varied his pace. And it was highly effective as he picked up 2-23, going at an economy rate of just 5.75.
In fact, he did not even attempt to bowl a yorker at the death, only the third time he has ever done so for England in T20 cricket. His two wickets also took him past Adil Rashid as the most successful England T20 bowler with 82 scalps.
Hardik's all-round brilliance
The 28-year-old has struggled with injuries in recent years and not been able to bowl much, so his magnificent all-round performance comes as a massive boost for India.
Pandya makes them a much more dynamic side when he is able to play as a genuine all-rounder and illustrated that perfectly by scoring 51 with the bat and then picking up 4-33 with the ball.
"I'm enjoying my cricket right now, that's the most important thing," Pandya said. "Obviously I want to get a lot of success but for me a lot of time goes into preparation making sure my skillset is alright.
"Because of the break I took before I wanted to get back into the rhythm and I want to make sure I can capitalise on every opportunity that comes."
