IND vs ENG, 1st T20I: Match abandoned due to rain

The match has been abandoned. We had 40 minutes left for the game to start but even if the rain stopped, there wouldn't have been enough to get the ground ready to play. We go to Nottingham with the series at 0-0.

The forecast isn't great. But the rain has reduced just a bit. We have 48 minutes for the match to restart. 

If the game restarts, the target will be the following:

• 19 overs - 183
• 18 overs - 176
• 17 overs - 169
• 16 overs - 162
• 15 overs - 154

We've officially started to lose overs. We'll lose an over every 4 minutes. For a 5-over match to happen (revised target will be 64), the game must start at 1:30 AM IST. 

The rain is steady and the covers are on. It doesn't like the game will start at the moment. 

Captain Shreyas Iyer and vice-captain Tilak Varma waiting for the rain to stop in the dressing room.⛈️ pic.twitter.com/kuhHgMWOkB

— 𝐑𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐢𝐢⁴⁵ (@rushiii_12) July 1, 2026

During the rain delay, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has decided to practice and gone for a indoor net session. 

If play doesn't start until 12:23 AM IST, we'll start losing overs. For a 5-over match to happen (the target will be 64), the game must start at 1:30 AM IST. Otherwise, the game will be called off.

The drizzle has only got heavier and the start of England's chase is delayed.

Despite going down to 6/2 in two overs, India have posted a good total of 189/7, with Axar Patel getting run out on the last ball. Abhishek Sharma (59 off 24) and Shreyas Iyer rescued India from that slump with an 82-run stand off 38 balls. After Abhishek fell in the 9th over, Iyer shouldered on with Tilak Varma, scoring a 68-run knock. But it was Shivam Dube who offered a late flourish to help India post a competitive total. Dube scored an unbeaten 21-ball 42.

Jos Buttler drops a catch as Shivam Dube survives. Sam Curran bowled a high full toss, trying to bowl a yorker. But Dube missed it completely and got a top-edge instead. However, despite Buttler going for that catch, he failed to hold on to that.

No finishing touches by Harshit Rana today. He was promoted to No.7 ahead of Axar Patel. But Adil Rashid outsmarted him with a googly. Rana missed it completely and Jos Buttler was quick to remove the stumps. Rana falls for a duck. India 174/6 with 8 balls left.

Just when Shreyas Iyer was looking to unleash, India lost their captain. Saqib Mahmood bags his third wicket as he traps Iyer LBW for 68 off 47. India 165/5 with 13 balls left in the innings.

Harry Brook gambled with bringing in Adil Rashid against Shivam Dube in the 17th over. Rashid is struggling to grip the ball with all the rain around. Dube hit Rashid for a six on the 2nd ball and got almost stumped out on the third delivery. Rashid bowled an excellent over despite the six, conceding just 9 runs.

India have last five overs to get to around a 170-180-run total. Shreyas Iyer is set, and he has support from Shivam Dube. India are 135/4.

Shreyas Iyer is back in form after two low scores against Ireland. He gets to his half-century off 37 deliveries. This is his 9th fifty in T20Is and the latest one comes after 942 days. This is his maiden T20I fifty as India's new T20I captain.

What a way to get out and he would be disappointed. Tilak Varma tried something fancy, trying to scoop off a delivery by Saqib Mahmood. But he did not get any timing and ended up edging it to Liam Dawson's hands at fine leg. He falls for 13 off 13.

Harry Brook takes the review again for an LBW appeal. Will Jacks was denied after Tilak Varma tried a switch hit and missed. But England thought it hit his pad. But the replays showed that the ball brushed the gloves. England lost a review. India 111/3 after 12.

Halfway through the first innings and India have scored 99/3 after losing Abhishek Sharma's firepower. Tilak Varma has joined Shreyas Iyer in the middle. The run rate has dipped a bit after losing Abhishek.

Harry Brook brought on Sam Curran and the left-arm seamer delivered in his 2nd delivery. Abhishek Sharma was commanding the English bowlers, but this time, he missed the line and the ball hit the pad. The original decision was not out and Brook did not take long to review. The replays showed that the ball was hitting the leg stump. Abhishek departs for 59 off 24.

Abhishek Sharma hits a 20-ball 50, his second on this UK tour. India were desperately looking for runs after Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan fell in the 2nd over. Abhishek took charge and dominated the proceedings, adding a half-century stand with Shreyas Iyer.

Despite the two wicketkeepers, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan, failing, India have posted 61/2. Abhishek Sharma has been the aggressor with a 19-ball 49. However, there is likely to be a short rain break with the drizzle getting heavier.

Ishan Kishan becomes the fastest batter to hit 100 sixes in T20Is in terms of balls faced. 

Fewest balls to reach 100 sixes in T20I

• 785 - Abhishek Sharma
• 789 - Evin Lewis
• 871 - Finn Allen
• 931 - Tim David
• 963 - Colin Munro
• 1007 - Suryakumar Yadav

Abhishek Sharma takes charge with two sixes and a four in the 4th over. But more than Abhishek, it was Saquib Mahmood who was at fault for bowling some absolutely loose deliveries. A misdirected short ball went for a four and there was no looking back. India scored 21 runs off the over. 

Ball 1: 0
Ball 2: 4
Ball 3: 6
Ball 4: 6
Ball 5: 1
Ball 6: 4

India are in trouble as Ishan Kisan is run out in the same over. He departs for a two-ball duck. He went for the single but Abhishek Sharma did not respond to his calls. And he got caught in the middle. Harry Brook's throw was spot on as Ishan fell short. India are 6/2 after 2 overs.

Sanju Samson departs for 1 after scoring 5 and 0 in the last two games. He did not look in good touch, failing to find the gap in his 7-ball stay. Saqib Mahmood bowled a full delivery outside off, and Samson tried to go for the slice, but failed to time it right and gave away a catch to Tom Banton at the backward point. He extends his inconsistent form in England. 

Samson's last 10 away from home scores in T20I

• 0
• 0
• 107
• 0
• 0
• 109*
• 2
• 5
• 0
• 1 – today

THE DISMISSAL OF SANJU SAMSON IN FIRST T20I.

- Sharp catch from Tom Banton to dismiss Sanju Samson. [🎥: Willow] pic.twitter.com/NGeyMGDmOF

— Maina Singh (@Maina_Singhx77) July 1, 2026

India are off to a cautious start with some movement on offer under cloudy sky. And there is a bit of drizzle at the moment.

Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma begin for India. Sanju is under pressure after two low scores in Ireland. Today, he needs runs. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is warming the bench and is itching for a chance. If Sanju continues to falter, it won't be long before Sooryavanshi replaces him. Abhishek Sharma scored a fifty in the 1st T20I against Ireland, before falling for a golden duck in the 2nd T20I. He would be aiming to avoid a repeat of that.

The England vs India 1st T20I is live in India on Sony Sports Network, with streaming available on SonyLIV and JioHotstar. 

England announced their Playing XI yesterday, resting Jofra Archer due to the short turnaround after the ENG vs NZ 3rd Test.

Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (c), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Adil Rashid, Luke Wood, Saqib Mahmood

Despite the overcast conditions and extra bounce on offer in Durham, India have opted to go with three spinners. Varun Chakaravarthy returned to the Playing XI, with Ravi Bishnoi and Axar Patel the other two spinners. Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh are the two seamers, along with Shivam Dube as a third seamer option. But there is no place for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy

India T20I captain Shreyas Iyer and England captain Harry Brook, who has recently succeeded Ben Stokes as the Test captain as well, are in the middle for the toss. And Iyer calls it correctly after Brook flips the coin. India opt to bat first despite the overcast conditions.

India's problems run deeper. The batting order that struggled so badly in Belfast, Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan and Iyer himself, has to find answers on a different continent against a sharper bowling attack. Varun Chakravarthy is back and gives the bowling more control, but that means someone from Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana or Prince Yadav sits out, and none of those is an easy call. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi remains uncapped. He was left out through both games in Ireland, and early signs suggest England may not be the venue where that changes either.

The Riverside pitch has been unpredictable through this year's Blast, defending modest totals in some games and getting overrun in others. Whichever side reads those conditions better in the first hour probably wins this.

England go into this series looking like the more settled unit, which is an odd thing to say about a team facing the world champions. Phil Salt and Jos Buttler open, Harry Brook bats at three, and the middle order runs through Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton and Will Jacks, all arriving fresh off strong domestic and franchise form. Adil Rashid needs three wickets to move into second on the all-time T20I wicket-takers list. Jofra Archer is in the squad but unlikely to play, two days removed from a Test match, which opens the door for Sonny Baker or Luke Wood in the pace attack.

Chester-le-Street has light drizzle through the day, and the rain probability for the evening sits at 35 per cent. Temperatures should reach around 21 degrees Celsius at their peak, cooling off as the evening session under lights gets underway.

If the drizzle clears in time for the toss, conditions should still favour the bowlers early, given the dampness already in the outfield and surface. If it is not clear, a rain delay or a reduced-overs match is a real possibility, and D/L calculations could end up deciding this one.

Weather summary: Overcast with drizzle likely | High: ~21°C | Rain chance: 35% | Reduced-overs match possible

Durham's surface this season has been genuinely hard to read. The T20 Blast games played here have gone in almost every direction: two modest totals successfully defended, one comfortably chased down, and the most recent match at the ground finished 128 against 130 in a rain-reduced game. There is no obvious pattern to lean on.

One thing does hold up regardless of the season, though: the new ball still matters most here. Cooler evening temperatures and grass cover help swing bowlers through the first six overs, and batters who get through that period usually find scoring opens up considerably. Spin plays a supporting role in the middle overs, relying more on change of pace than sharp turn.

A first innings total in the 165 to 180 range is generally considered competitive here, though this year's small sample has been erratic enough that either side batting first could end up well outside that range. Chasing has had a slight recent edge in white-ball cricket at this venue, partly because dew tends to arrive later in the evening under lights.

Toss verdict: No strong lean either way this year, but recent results point toward fielding first and using the moisture with the new ball if the skies stay overcast.

India lead the overall T20I record against England, 18 wins from 30 completed meetings. That gap looks wide on paper, but it flattens out considerably on English soil, where home advantage tends to matter more.

The two most recent encounters cut in opposite directions in one sense and the same direction in another. India beat England in this year's T20 World Cup semi-final, ending England's title defence on the way to their own trophy. Before that, India won a bilateral series in India 4-1, a scoreline that made the margin look wider than the cricket in a couple of those games actually was.

England have generally been a tougher opponent at home than the head-to-head suggests. Conditions here reward the kind of new-ball swing bowling their attack is built around, and India's top order has run into trouble with exactly that on past tours.