Witness the dazzling fireworks by Abhishek Sharma lighting up Wankhede Stadium in India’s T20I. An unforgettable celebration of cricket and entertainment awaits.
Introduction:
Jos Buttler won the toss and chose to bowl first in the fifth and final T20I against India at Mumbai’s iconic Wankhede Stadium. With the series already secured by India, England aimed to salvage some pride and carry momentum into the upcoming ODI series.
England brought in Mark Wood for Saqib Mahmood, even though Mahmood had blazed a debut in Pune, taking a triple-wicket maiden. And Jofra Archer returned fully from injury to play all five games under Brendon McCullum’s first series as head coach, saying England was committed to the speedster ahead of the Champions Trophy.
See also: Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya Rescue India
India, on the other hand, declared one change – Mohammed Shami in for Arshdeep Singh. Shivam Dube, who received a blow to the helmet in the last match, was back into his all-rounder role.

Power-Hitting Chaos at Wankhede
As soon as the match started, firecrackers were lit. Sanju Samson took the aggressive route against Archer and smote the latter for two towering sixes and a boundary in quick succession. However, his innings was cut short, as Mark Wood got him caught at backward square leg, and he got dismissed for a 7-ball 16.

Abhishek Sharma Steal the Show
Abhishek Sharma took center stage now, and what an exhibition of stroke play he displayed. He blasted a 17-ball half-century, the second-fastest for India in T20Is, only behind Yuvraj Singh’s legendary 12-ball feat. The left-hander took a particular liking to Archer and Overton, striking them to all parts of the ground. By the time he reached his century in just 37 balls, he had set a record for the fastest T20I hundred by an Indian against a Full-Member nation.

His six-hitting exhibition left the English bowlers clueless. With 13 sixes and 7 boundaries in his 54-ball 135, Abhishek wrote his name into the record books with the highest individual score by an Indian in T20Is.
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Although India had the electric start, England fought back in the game. Carse contributed significantly to that by dismissing Tilak Varma for 24 and Suryakumar Yadav for just 2. Rashid got Shivam Dube for 30 with a well-disguised wrong.

Hardik Pandya’s promising cameo was cut short when he mistimed a pull to deep backward square leg, giving Wood his second wicket. The late-order batters failed to carry on the early momentum, and India finished with 247/9 in their 20 overs.
England’s Uphill Chase
While 247 was a daunting total, Wankhede’s short boundaries and dew factor kept England hopeful. Their response, however, faced an immediate setback. Archer, who was influential with the ball, departed early to an in-swinging yorker from Mohammed Shami.

Liam Livingstone and Jos Buttler tried to counterattack but India’s spin-heavy bowling attack, led by Ravi Bishnoi and Axar Patel, never let up on the pressure. When Rashid’s final over saw the dismissal of the dangerous Abhishek Sharma, the game tilted decisively in India’s favor.

A Night to Remember for Indian Cricket
India’s score of 247/9, though not enough to cross 250, will be remembered for Abhishek Sharma’s spectacular innings. Aggressive batting from him combined with a brave yet meaningless chase by England ensured that Wankhede saw another T20 cracker.
With this victory, India easily wrapped up the series in dominating fashion, shifting focus to the ODI leg with confidence, while England will have to regroup and reassess ahead of the 50-over battle.