A thoroughly professional England annihilated an out-of- sync India by 10 wickets to sail into the World Cup final as Alex Hales and Jos Buttler's relentless hitting mortified Rohit Sharma's clueless attack, on Thursday. England seemed to have saved their best for the grand stage as they reduced the semifinal to a lop-sided affair, courtesy a splendid bowling effort which they complemented with some breath-taking stroke-making.
It was Hardik Pandya (68 off 33 balls), whose fearless hitting took India to 168/6 but it was just about a par-score at the Adelaide Oval. England captain Buttler (80 not out) set the tone with three boundaries off Bhuvneshwar Kumar's opening over but it was Hales (86 not out off) who butchered the Indian attack into submission.
Meanwhile, ‘Devastated, gutted, hurt’, said star all-rounder Hardik Pandya after India suffered a humiliating 10-wicket loss to England.
"Devastated, gutted, hurt. Tough to take, for all of us. To my teammates, I’ve enjoyed the bond that we built - we fought for each other every step of the way. Thank you to our support staff for their endless dedication and hardwork for months on end," he tweeted.
"To our fans who backed us everywhere we went, we’re forever grateful. It wasn’t meant to be but we’ll reflect and keep fighting."
The target was achieved in just 16 overs as England batting line-up clicked for the first time in the tourney and what a day it chose to brings its A game to the fore.
The England opening duo gave India's star-studded line-up a lesson in how to build a T20 innings: that there is only one way, the offensive way.
It was one match that was decided in Powerplay as India managed only 38 runs in six overs as the archaic style of safety-first approach hurt them terribly.
In complete contrast, England's top order which looked shaky throughout the league stage, smashed 63 in their six overs. The match was won and lost then and there.
India's next assignment will be the limited over tour of New Zealand where they will play three T20Is, and as many ODIs, starting November 18.
