11pm Thumping win for England in Morgan's 100th T20I. That's all she wrote for today. Andrew Miller's report will tell you the full story of the evening. Hope you enjoyed our coverage as much as we did bringing it to you. Be back for the fourth T20I on March 18. Until then, this is Deivarayan Muthu signing off for Chandan Duorah. Stay safe and take care.
Buttler, Man of the Match: It was nice to spend time in the middle and I always like to not out at the end. Every time you get early wickets in the powerplay, it sets you up. It just felt like a good time to attack [at the top]. It was nice to chance my arm a bit. The first six off got me up and running and gave me confidence. I just tried to get across what a special achievement it is to get to 100 matches, being the first English [men's] player to do that.
Morgan: When you look at conditions tonight, Adil started well and when the pacers came on, the carry that we saw was a bit of a surprise for us. I thought the first half of our bowling was exceptional. The wicket stayed similar, throughout all the games, and if you lose early wickets at the top that raises a question. It's just a dynamic of T20 cricket. There is no need. Jos is a world-class player and he has averaged upwards of 50 and striking at 150 at the top. There's very little you have to say to Jos. He's been in incredible form and he's a great leader within our group. It nearly got me to tears [getting the 100th cap from Buttler]. He's a great friend of mine and our families are close. His words warmed my heart and I'm very grateful for that.
Kohli: If that [my innings] helps the team, then for sure (happy with your innings?) You don't want to play knocks that don't help the team. The pitch was tacky, but they [England] had extra pace and hit good areas. The key was partnerships and we had one little partnership. Even Hardik [Pandya] in the first half, it was not easy to hit through the line. The case was to get set and get us to a decent total. Well, I was going through a lean patch two games ago. He's [Rahul's] a champion player and he'll continue to be one of our main batters along with Rohit. T20 is an instinctive game and once a few shots come off... It is [toss is a factor], but if you lose the toss, embrace what has been asked from you. The England bowlers attacked right lines and lengths and with their pace they became more potent. We lacked intensity in the second half. We want to give Hardik a bit more responsibility with the ball; we know what he can do with the bat.
10.25pm Bairstow pumps his fist and Morgan, featuring in his 100th T20I, celebrates with his team-mates in the dug out. For a brief while, Kohli sizzed, but otherwise England have bossed their way to a 2-1 series lead. The returning Wood set the speed gun on fire once again, combining with Jordan to rattle India in the powerplay. Buttler then showed India how it's done in the powerplay and pressed on to 83* off 52 balls - his career-best T20 score. I'll bring you the presentations shortly.
Wood: The two pitches I've played on have a bit of bounce and I enjoyed those conditions. My role in the team is to try and bang it on a good length and make something happen. Kohli's a fantastic player and very hard to bowl at and he played some great shots in the end. It's good to play against great players and test yourself. We have some fantastic death bowlers - Archer and Jordan - but I can do the role. It's a shame I went [for runs] in the last over, but credit to Virat. It's something both teams like to chase. If we still bat first, I'll back our players, just like India will. We have some fantastic players. We always get this question (who is faster: you or Archer? Me and Jofra have a friendly competition and obviously he's very fast as well.
Shailesh Rana: "Chahal got hit a lot in the two matches apart from the one he won for us in Aus. In this series his stats are 44-1, 34-1 and 41-1. So I don't think he's just having an off-night."
Sampath has another nugget for you
Highest scores by wicketkeepers in T20I chases:
89 - Mohammad Rizwan vs NZ, Napier, 2020
84* - Tim Seifert vs PAK, Hamilton, 2020
83* - Jos Buttler vs IND, Ahmedabad, Today
Obaid: "Surprisingly no yorkers from Bhuvi...but very economical though" --- Quite tough to execute yorkers in these dewy conditions
END OF OVER:18 | 9 Runs | ENG: 150/2 (7 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 8.33, RRR: 3.50)
- Jos Buttler83 (52b)
- Jonny Bairstow32 (26b)
- Bhuvneshwar Kumar4-0-27-0
- Shardul Thakur3-0-28-0
Vysakh : "Give it a rest guys.. Chahal is just having an off night like stokes in the previous one"
END OF OVER:17 | 9 Runs | ENG: 141/2 (16 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 8.29, RRR: 5.33)
- Jonny Bairstow24 (22b)
- Jos Buttler82 (50b)
- Shardul Thakur3-0-28-0
- Washington Sundar4-0-26-1
NethraReya: "With Bumrah, Nattu and Varun in, story could've been a lot different. So don't lose hope guys. We will have them ready for the WC. "
Shubham Agarwal: "India's fielding has been quite poor by the standards they set frankly. Yes they are winning and in top 2-3 teams across formats. But they are making too many blunders in the field. People dropping catches frequently, midfields etc.."