England won the fourth T20I in Bristol to take an unbeatable 3-0 lead and seal the five-match series against India. Captain Shreyas Iyer fought hard with an unbeaten 80, but he got almost no support, and England chased down the target with ease to complete another one-sided win.
For India, it was the same story again — one batter standing tall while the rest fell cheaply, and a bowling attack that could not defend a below-par total. England, on the other hand, were sharp and confident from start to finish.
India post 158/7 as Iyer fights alone
India won the toss and chose to bat first. But once again the top order failed to settle, and wickets kept falling at regular intervals. Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue were superb with the new ball, using short-pitched bowling to trouble India's batters, and both finished with two wickets each.
Young Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hit a big six before falling for 15 — the second time in a row that Archer has dismissed him in the powerplay. From there, it was left to captain Shreyas Iyer to hold the innings together. He played a brave, counter-attacking knock of 80 not out off 49 balls, with four fours and five sixes.
Sadly for India, there was very little help at the other end. Shivam Dube made 22, but the rest of the batting came and went quickly. India finished on 158/7 in 20 overs — a total that always looked short on a good Bristol pitch.
England chase it down with ease
England began the chase in positive fashion. They lost Jos Buttler early to Arshdeep Singh, but that was the only real moment of hope for India. After that, Phil Salt and Harry Brook took complete control.
Both batters brought up fifties and made the chase look simple. They attacked India's pace and spin without any trouble, and India's bowlers had no answer once the pair got going. England knocked off the runs with plenty to spare and wrapped up a comfortable win to seal the series.
Another tough night for India
This was yet another disappointing result for India, coming right after their heavy 125-run defeat in Nottingham. The batting once again leaned too heavily on one player, and the bowlers could not create enough pressure while defending a small total.
The defeat also means Shreyas Iyer is still without a win in his first five T20Is as India captain — a very tough start to his leadership. India made two changes for this game, bringing in Washington Sundar and Prasidh Krishna for the injured Varun Chakravarthy and Harshit Rana, but the result was the same.
What this result means
With this win, England have taken the T20I series 3-0 and continued their strong form at home. For India, the loss raises big questions about their batting depth and their bowling in pressure situations.
The fifth and final T20I is now a dead rubber as far as the series is concerned, but it still matters for India. They will want to finish the tour with at least one win and take some confidence into the ODI leg that follows.
ENG vs IND 4th T20I Result
India: 158/7 in 20 overs (Shreyas Iyer 80*, Shivam Dube 22; Jofra Archer 2-20, Josh Tongue 2-36)
England: chased down the target comfortably (Phil Salt and Harry Brook both scored fifties)
Result: England beat India and sealed the series 3-0
India will now hope to bounce back and avoid a bigger series margin in the final match, but for now, England have clearly been the better side throughout this contest.
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