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India Vs England, 2nd T20I: Tilak Varma Guides Hosts To Nervous Two-Wicket Win

A match-winning half-century from Tilak Varma was at the heart of India's slender two-wicket victory over England in the second T20I in Chennai on Saturday (January 25, 2025). With the win, the hosts took a 2-0 lead in the five-match series. India came up with a tidy bowling display to restrict England to 165 for 9, with Axar Patel grabbing the crucial wickets of skipper Jos Buttler (45) and Liam Livingstone (13). In reply, the home team completed the chase in 19.2 overs with Varma making an unbeaten 72 off 55 balls. All-rounder Washington Sundar chipped in with 26 off 19 balls as the others failed to deliver with the bat.

India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Tilak Varma
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Tilak Varma celebrates after hitting the winnings runs | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Tilak Varma celebrates after hitting the winnings runs during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Jos Buttler
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: Jos Buttler, right, watches as Suryakumar Yadav tosses the coin | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's captain Jos Buttler, right, watches as India's captain Suryakumar Yadav tosses the coin ahead of second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Phil Salt
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Phil Salt watches the ball | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Phil Salt watches the ball just before he is caught by India's Washington Sundar during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Arshdeep Singh
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Arshdeep Singh celebrates the dismissal of England's Phil Salt | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Arshdeep Singh celebrates the dismissal of England's Phil Salt during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Ben Duckett
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Ben Duckett plays a shot | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Ben Duckett plays a shot during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Jos Buttler
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's captain Jos Buttler plays a shot | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's captain Jos Buttler plays a shot during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Jos Buttler
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Jos Buttler celebrates with Ben Duckett | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's captain Jos Buttler, right, celebrates with batting partner Ben Duckett after hitting a boundary during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Washington Sundar
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Washington Sundar celebrates after the dismissal of England's Ben Duckett | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Washington Sundar, second right, celebrates with teammates after the dismissal of England's Ben Duckett during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Varun Chakravarthy
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: Varun Chakravarthy aims to throw the ball towards the stumps | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Hardik Pandya, left, watches as teammate Varun Chakravarthy aims to throw the ball towards the stumps during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Harry Brook
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Harry Brook, left, is bowled out | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Harry Brook, left, is bowled out by India's Varun Chakravarthy during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Varun Chakravarthy
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Varun Chakravarthy celebrates after the dismissal of England's Harry Brook | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Varun Chakravarthy, left, celebrates with captain Suryakumar Yadav after the dismissal of England's Harry Brook, right, during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Varun Chakravarthy
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Varun Chakravarthy bowls a delivery | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Varun Chakravarthy bowls a delivery during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Axar Patel
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Axar Patel celebrates the dismissal of England's captain Jos Buttler | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Axar Patel, right, celebrates the dismissal of England's captain Jos Buttler during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai:  Jos Buttler
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's captain Jos Buttler walks off the field after losing his wicket | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's captain Jos Buttler walks off the field after losing his wicket during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Axar Patel
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Axar Patel celebrates the dismissal of England's Liam Livingstone during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai:  Jamie Overton
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Jamie Overton plays a shot | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Jamie Overton plays a shot during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Brydon Carse
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Brydon Carse plays a shot | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Brydon Carse plays a shot during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Abhishek Sharma
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Abhishek Sharma celebrates the dismissal of England's Jamie Smith | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Abhishek Sharma celebrates the dismissal of England's Jamie Smith during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Varun Chakravarthy
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Varun Chakravarthy celebrates the dismissal of England's Jamie Overton | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Varun Chakravarthy, right, celebrates the dismissal of England's Jamie Overton, left, during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Hardik Pandya
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Hardik Pandya, right, bowls a delivery | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Hardik Pandya, right, bowls a delivery past England's Jofra Archer during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Abhishek Sharma
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Abhishek Sharma plays a shot | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Abhishek Sharma plays a shot during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai:  Jofra Archer
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Jofra Archer bowls a delivery | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Jofra Archer bowls a delivery during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai:  Jos Buttler
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Jofra Archer, right, celebrates with captain Jos Buttler | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Jofra Archer, right, celebrates with captain Jos Buttler after the dismissal of India's Sanju Samson during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Mark Wood
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Mark Wood celebrates after the dismissal of India's Abhishek Sharma | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Mark Wood, third right, celebrates with teammates after the dismissal of India's Abhishek Sharma during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Brydon Carse
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Brydon Carse celebrates after the dismissal of India's Suryakumar Yadav | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Brydon Carse, right, celebrates with teammates after the dismissal of India's captain Suryakumar Yadav during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Brydon Carse
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Brydon Carse celebrates with captain Jos Buttler | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Brydon Carse, left, celebrates with captain Jos Buttler after the dismissal of India's Dhruv Jurel during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Jamie Overton
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: England's Jamie Overton celebrates with teammates after the dismissal of India's Hardik Pandya | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

England's Jamie Overton, without cap, celebrates with teammates after the dismissal of India's Hardik Pandya during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Washington Sundar
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Washington Sundar plays a shot | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Washington Sundar plays a shot during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Tilak Varma
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Washington Sundar and batting partner Tilak Varma celebrate scoring runs | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Washington Sundar, right, and batting partner Tilak Varma celebrate scoring runs during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Ravi Bishnoi
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Ravi Bishnoi runs to make it successfully into the crease | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Ravi Bishnoi, left, runs to make it successfully into the crease during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Arshdeep Singh
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Arshdeep Singh plays a shot | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Arshdeep Singh plays a shot during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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India vs England Cricket IND vs ENG 2nd T20 Match at Chennai: Ravi Bishnoi
IND vs ENG 2nd T20: India's Tilak Varma speaks to batting partner Ravi Bishnoi | Photo: AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

India's Tilak Varma speaks to batting partner Ravi Bishnoi, right, during the second T20 cricket match between India and England at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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