India post 147-7 against England in first T20I

India posted 147-7 against England in the first Twenty-20 International (T20I) cricket match at the Green Park stadium here on Thursday.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli (29) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (36 not out) were the major contributors to the cause.

Indian openers, K.L. Rahul (8) and Kohli (29) started the match on a good note by scoring at a good pace.

But soon, Rahul, who was struggling to find his rhythm in the middle was sent back to the pavilion in the fifth over by pacer Chris Jordan.

Jordan delivered the short ball which tangled Rahul completely and as a result the short fine leg pocketed the top edge to dismiss him.

Two overs later, Kohli, who seemed good at the crease was sent packing by spinner Moeen Ali. The 28-year-old was caught at mid-wicket by Eoin Morgan, with India at 55-2.

Incoming batsmen Suresh Raina, who was making his comeback after a long Hiatus and Yuvraj Singh (12) also failed to step up to the occasion as the Punjab batsman was caught by Adil Rashid at fine leg off Liam Plunkett in the 11th over.

Raina, who scored 34 runs in 23 balls, was the next batsman to go. In the 13th over, the Uttar Pradesh batsman was bowled by pacer Ben Stokes, who bowled an inch-perfect leg-stump yorker which off popped the bails.

Things got worse for the hosts when the new batsman Manish Pandey (3) was sent back by Ali in the next over. He was adjudged leg before wicket while trying to work the ball on the leg side.

Hardik Pandya also departed for nine runs. He was caught by Sam Billings at the deep backward point off Pacer Tymal Mills in the 17th over.

The last three overs saw some fight back from Dhoni, who was seeing the fall of wickets from the other end. His 29 -ball knock helped the hosts to get past the 140-run mark.

For England, Ali scalped two wickets while Mills, Jordan Plunkett and Strokes chipped in with one wicket each

Brief scores:

India 147-7 (Mahendra Singh Dhoni 36 not out, Virat Kohli 29; Moeen Ali 2-21) against England.

--IANS

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