India seize thriller in Sano against Japan in historic one-off T20I

After a prolonged delay owing to the rain Gods, cricket eventually found a foothold in Sano as India eked out a 2-run win from a hard-fought 5-over-a-side thriller against Japan.

In what was supposed to be a historic clash between the two nations to promote their long-standing camaraderie, rain played major spoilsport, reducing the game to just five overs a side.

Winning the toss, India opted to bat first. Sanju Samson (9) did command a decent charge in the first over but Abhishek Sharma fell for a golden duck to give Japan a leash of life. After Charles Hinze got the better of Sharma, Ibrahim Takahashi claimed Samson in the next over to leave India frazzled.

The Japanese spinners kept on knitting together a wave of mystery around the Indian batters as Ishan Kishan (3) was the next to get trapped in it. Eventually Shreyas Iyer took over the reins and understanding the conditions of the ground and the pitch, he started knocking the ball around for singles and doubles instead of going too hard for the boundaries.

Iyer scored a 12-ball-16 which allowed India to post 32/4 at the end of their five overs. Charles Hinze registered figures of 2/17 while Ibrahim Takahashi and Benjamin Ito-Davis claimed one wicket apiece to stall India’s scoring rate.

Realizing how spin worked its way through, India didn’t waste a single over to get their best in the act. Axar Patel was asked to deliver the first over and he pulled off a decent act, the same over in which Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake (1) got run out in the first over by Ishan Kishan.

Washington Sundar doubled down on the charge by claiming Ibrahim Takahashi (4) in the next over. The Japanese skipper, Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming (12) did put in a strong shift, regulating the innings and propelling Japan to the cusp of what could have been an iconic upset.

However, Washington Sundar was able to remove Kadowaki-Fleming in the last ball of the penultimate over before Axar Patel dropped another phenomenal final over to seal the deal for India, seizing a thrilling win by two runs. With eight needed to win in the final over, Axar only conceded five runs as India bagged the bragging rights of the game. Shreyas Iyer bagged the Player of the Match award for his watchful show with the bat.