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England's captain, Eoin Morgan, led his side to a comfortable seven wicket win - with a 38-ball 51 - in the first Twenty20 International played in Kanpur on Thursday. Morgan won the toss and opted to bowl first on a surface that had a tinge of grass. India's openers, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, looked to attack from the onset but failed and fell within three overs of each other on either side of the Powerplay. It was just the start that England hoped for. The hosts on the other hand looked to their powerful middle order - comprising for Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey and MS Dhoni - to bail them out of trouble. But Raina, Singh and Pandey faltered and fell between the 11th and the 14th over. India never really recovered, as England's bowling unit made the most of helpful conditions. Tymal Mills, Chris Jordan, Liam Plunkett and Ben Stokes hit the deck and pegged India on the back foot, while Moeen Ali, the sole spinner, at his stingy best, dismissed Kohli and kept the scoring in check in the middle overs, which ensured India was restricted to 147 in their innings. England required to score at just over seven an over to emerge victorious. Their openers, Jason Roy and Sam Billings, got them off to a quick fire start, clobbering 36 in the first three overs. Leg spinner, Yuzvendra Chahal dismissed the free-scoring duo but the early damage had already been done. Joe Root and Morgan added 83 runs for the third wicket to ensure England didn't lose their way after their openers departed. Morgan smashing four sixes and a four in his match-winning innings. Root remained unbeaten on a run-a-ball 46. England won the match with 11 balls remaining. "Our bowlers were outstanding tonight, Moeen Ali in particular showed great resolve," Morgan said. "We showed a lot of experience, and Tymal Mills and Chris Jordan put their hands up in very important roles. They made it very hard for the Indian batsmen on a small ground. Sam Billings and Jason Roy did outstandingly well, Sam has taken his two chances when he's had the opportunity."
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