Harshit Rana has got the opportunity to make his ODI debut for India but noting the current scenario of the game, it can be said that the things haven't quite gone the youngster’s way early on. Winning the toss, England captain Jos Buttler elected to bat first and his decision was proven right by his openers Phil Salt and Ban Duckett, who delivered an explosive start to the visiting side. From the start of the contest, both openers opted for the attacking strategy.
Along with Mohammed Shami, debutant Rana got the responsibility to bowl initial overs. Facing the ire of both English openers, both Shami and Rana struggled to contain runs. However, things got worse for Rana in the sixth over of the contest as Salt took him to the cleaners. Taking advantage of the debutant’s inexperience, Salt smashed Rana for 26 runs.
The over started with a maximum and following that, Rana looked anxious. However, the Englishman refused to relent as he scored another boundary. This time, Rana’s length ball was responded with a four. Following a couple of boundaries, the 28-year-old shattered the speedster’s confidence with a six. Taking the momentum ahead, Salt hit two more boundaries and wrapped up the over by collecting 26 runs.
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Rana makes a strong comeback after the drubbing
After bowling the horrendous over, captain Rohit Sharma brought Rana back into the attack after Salt’s departure. This time, he looked confident as the youngster got rid of Duckett and Harry Brook in the same over. His hunts helped the Men in Blue have a command over the game.
As of 2:27 pm (IST), England have racked up 77 runs with a loss of three wickets. Two new batters Joe Root and Jos Buttler are in the middle and their responsibility will be to utilise the start given by their openers.
