"You have to have a bowler that can bowl really well": Abhishek on Varun Chakravarthy

Varun Chakravarthy during his 3-23 v England on Wednesday

Abhishek Sharma, making light of the loss of two early wickets in quick succession, provided a glimpse of Team India's new batting ethos with a blistering knock.

But, for England, the first T20I threw up another area of concern - after the first salvos were fired at the Eden Gardens on Wednesday - reading leg-spinner Varun Chakravarthy.

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Abhishek Sharma

Harry Brook and Liam Livingstone had no clue of the googlies that slipped through their gates in Chakravarthy's second over. The others that faced him, with the exception of skipper Jos Buttler, looked ill at ease against his well disguised mix.

"They're all really good players, and we know they're going to be hit by a lot of spin in India. I expect them to always play at least three spinners, so a lot of the guys are going to start against spin," Buttler said, defending his batters. He hoped they will work out a way and "commit to their plans to put the pressure back on them [Indian spinners]."

Meanwhile, Abhishek is not surprised by Chakravarthy's influence on Wednesday's game. "If you see the last few series, the way Varun has bowled, he's been the game-changer for us. You get good wickets everywhere in the T20 format, so you have to have a bowler that can bowl really well [in those conditions]," said the southpaw, who wrapped things up with a flurry of fours and sixes to score 79 at a staggering strike-rate of 232.

The two teams have a similar approach when it comes to batting, and the England captain stressed they would not waver from their overly aggressive style.
"We're always trying to be aggressive in T20s. That's been the way in English white-ball cricket ever since 2015; the message has never really wavered from that. It's down to individuals being able to have options against spin. It won't come off sometimes, but we're backing everyone to play the way they want and commit to it," said Buttler.