Abhishek stars for India as England suffer record T20 defeat

India handed England an embarrassing defeat in the final T20 of the series on Sunday, thrashing the visitors by a record-breaking 150 runs in Mumbai.

Having already won the five-game series, the hosts batted first and lived up to their pre-match cricket betting odds by accruing an impressive 247/9.

Abhishek Sharma was the primary architect of India’s total, plundering 135 runs from just 54 balls.

The opener found company in the form of rapid-fire cameos by Sanju Samson (16 from 7), Tilak Varma (24 from 15) and Shivam Dube (30 from 13).

The damage could have been worse had Adil Rashid not snagged Abhishek on the final ball of the 18th over, allowing England to limit India to 10/2 from the final two overs.

In response, opener Phil Salt and allrounder Jacob Bethell were the only Englishmen capable of making double digits with the bat.

Salt made a respectable 55 from 23, but the remainder of England’s lineup crumbled as they were dismissed for 97 runs after just 10.3 overs.

Despite the margin of 150 runs being England’s heaviest defeat in T20 cricket, captain Jos Buttler was not dissuaded from continuing with his side’s ultra-aggressive approach.

“We’re disappointed to lose the series, but we’ve done some things well and some things we want to improve on,” he said.

“We want to keep committing to this style of cricket and execute better.

“India are a fantastic side, especially at home, and we’re better for the experience, the experience of great crowds like this at the Wankhede.

“Some of the guys’ bowling performances — even today, Brydon Carse and Mark Wood were outstanding.

“I’ve seen a lot of cricket and I thought Abhishek’s innings today was one of the best.”

Speaking after the match, Abhishek credited India’s supportive team environment for his career-best knock.

“When I see it’s my day, I always try to go from the first ball,” he said.

“The way the coach and the captain have treated me from the first day. They’ve always wanted this intent, they’ve always backed me.

“When the opponents are bowling 140, 150-plus, you have to be ready a little earlier. Just react to the ball and play my shots.”

England have little time to lick their wounds, with the first of three ODIs taking place in Nagpur on Thursday, February 6.

The visitors head into match as +150 underdogs across top cricket bookmakers, while India are paying -188.68 for the win.

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