Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Matthew Cooper

5 talking points as Dawid Malan and Reece Topley star amid Suryakumar Yadav's heroics

Jos Buttler earned his first win as England 's permanent white-ball captain, with his side avoiding a 3-0 series whitewash against India despite a brutal century from Suryakumar Yadav.

Dawid Malan and Reece Topley both starred for England, with Malan's 77 off 39 balls leading the hosts to an imposing total of 215-7. He was ably supported by Liam Livingstone's unbeaten 42 from 29 balls, while Harry Brook and Chris Jordan both played useful cameos.

In response, England got off to an excellent start as they reduced India to 31-3, with Topley taking two of the early wickets. However, Yadav then took centre stage as he blasted a stunning hundred which almost single-handedly won India the match.

However, nobody else really contributed with the bat for the visitors and when Yadav was caught by Phil Salt in the 19th over, India's hopes of winning evaporated. Jordan then closed out the innings expertly as England completed a dramatic 17-run victory.

Here are five talking points...

Malan delivers under pressure

With a career average above 40 and a strike-rate of almost 140 in T20I cricket, Malan's statistics are a real standout and he was at one time ranked as the number on T20I batter in the world by the ICC. However, since the start of 2021, his returns began to dip.

Malan's last innings in 2020 was an outstanding unbeaten 99 off 47 balls against South Africa, but since then he managed to pass fifty twice in 18 innings as his average dropped to 26.50 and his strike-rate fell to 114.59.

After two disappointing innings in the first two T20Is against India, Malan was in need of a score and he delivered in excellent fashion, striking 77 off 39 at a strike-rate of 197.43 to propel England to an impressive total of 215-7.

Dawid Malan scored a brilliant 77 (Philip Brown/Popperfoto/Popperfoto via Getty Images)

England opt for an extra batter

After England's batting let them down in the first two T20Is, they opted to play an extra batter in Salt. The 25-year-old has enjoyed an impressive start to his international career so far, having struck a brutal half-century on his T20I debut against the West Indies in January and scored a brilliant century as England posted a world-record ODI total against the Netherlands in June.

Although he only managed eight off six, the extra depth in batting was crucial for England, with Brook coming in at number seven and playing a crucial cameo of 19 off just nine balls and Livingstone benefitting from the fact he did not come in during the powerplay as he struck 42 off 29.

Malik's extra pace

When a player with the ability to bowl express pace bursts onto the scene it is very exciting and that is exactly what Umran Malik did in this year's IPL. Having played three IPL games for Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2021, he was ever present and took 22 wickets at 20.18.

He regularly bowled at speeds over 95mph, with his fastest delivery clocked at 97.5mph. As a result, Malik was fast-tracked into India's T20I side and he remains a raw talent.

At Trent Bridge, he bowled the fastest delivery by an Indian bowler in a T20I in England and got the wicket of Roy, getting him out with a combination of extra pace and bounce. However, he ultimately ended with 1-56 from his four overs, the third most expensive figures for an Indian in T20I cricket, illustrating the fact he remains a work in progress.

Reece Topley was named player of the match (Gareth Copley - ECB/ECB via Getty Images)

Topley impresses

The left-armer is an underrated member of this England T20 side and has impressed since returning to the international stage after a series of stress fractures threatened to end his career. Topley was a part of the England side which lost the 2016 T20 World Cup and has been largely excellent since returning from an almost six-year absence at the start of this year.

In 2022, Topley has taken seven wickets at an average of 24.00 and an economy rate of 7.00 in six matches. In his six appearances across 2015 and 2016, he picked up five wickets at an average of 34.60 and economy rate of 10.07, underlining his improvement as a bowler.

And he was named player of the match at Trent Bridge after picking up 3-22 from his four overs and helping England defend their total. Having made England's T20 World Cup squad last year as a late replacement for the injured Tymal Mills, Topley will surely be part of the original squad this year.

Suryakumar Yadav celebrates his century (Philip Brown/Popperfoto/Popperfoto via Getty Images)

Yadav's brilliant hundred

In a stunning display of batting, Yadav struck a brutal 117 from just 55 balls and almost single-handedly won India the game. It was the second-highest individual score by an Indian in T20Is and, with none of his teammates passing 28, one of the best innings you will ever see in a losing cause.

He struck 14 boundaries and six sixes, before holing out in the penultimate over to end India's hopes of winning. Both Buttler and Topley paid tribute to Yadav's innings after the match, with the England skipper saying: "It was some innings from Suryakumar Yadav.

"It was one of the best hundreds that I've seen and he put us under a lot of pressure." Topley added: "Suryakumar Yadav's knock left me speechless. I was in awe."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.