England's vice-captain, Harry Brook, has attributed his team's struggles against India's spin bowlers in the first T20I to an unexpected yet familiar adversary for English touring sides—a thick layer of smog enveloping the ground in Kolkata. The challenging conditions seemed to play a role in England's inability to counter India's spinners effectively, leading to a disappointing collapse.
Brook himself managed 17 off 14 balls before falling to a deceptive wrong'un from India's legspinner, Varun Chakravarthy. Chakravarthy, who emerged as the standout performer with figures of 3 for 23, also dismissed Liam Livingstone in a near-identical manner two balls later. England crumbled from a promising 65 for 2 to a meager 132 all out, with India's spinners collectively taking five crucial wickets. Ravi Bishnoi, though wicketless, was equally economical, returning figures of 0 for 22.