England opener Ben Duckett was disappointed with his dismissal in the third T20I against India at the Niranjan Shah Stadium, Rajkot on Tuesday. Duckett top-scored with 51 runs off 28 balls and played a key role in helping his team post 171 runs on the board after SKY won the toss.
The left-hander reached his 50 off just 26 balls but he was dismissed soon after the personal milestone by India’s vice-captain Axar Patel. Duckett scored seven fours and two sixes before he was caught at long-on by Abhishek Sharma. The southpaw said he should have cleared the fence as he has the experience of playing against Axar Patel in Test cricket.
Speaking to reporters, Duckett said, “Two years ago, I would probably have been disappointed with myself how I got out, but me now, I’m thinking I missed out on six runs. I know what Axar does, I have faced him in Test cricket and it felt like my match-up. We speak about it a lot, we’d just lost a wicket but this side isn’t about reining it in.
“You saw what [Liam Livingstone] did after we lost two or three wickets, hitting three sixes. I was just disappointed I didn’t hit it – I won’t say 10 rows back, three rows back – because [Patel] was the guy I should have taken down.”
England were able to register a 26-run win in Rajkot to make it 2-1 in the series. The visitors lost the first two matches of the series but Duckett feels they could have been 2-1 up in the series if they had grabbed their chances.
“It’s a big moment for this team because it could have gone a different way. Credit to the guys for doing exactly what [Brendon McCullum] wants us to go and do. It’s to entertain. At times it’s not going to work, and that’s fine. But we could easily be 2-1 up in the series if things had gone a little bit better for us at the back end of the second game.”
The fourth T20I between India and England will take place at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune on Friday.
