Rain robs England of run chase as India series opener washed out

England vs India: First T20 international abandoned after rain in Durham England's opening T20I against India rained off at Chester-le-Street before second innings; India had posted 189-7 in 20 overs before weather denies England chance to chase; watch all eight games of India's white-ball tour of England live on Sky Sports Cricket Wednesday 1 July 2026 20:42, UK England’s first T20 international against India was abandoned due to rain before the hosts’ had the chance to chase down 190 for victory in Durham. Just two days after Ben Stokes' dramatic international retirement at Trent Bridge, Harry Brook - his potential replacement as Test skipper - was in charge of bringing some order to England's chaotic summer. In the end, he was forced to settle on a soggy stalemate as rain fell continuously through the first innings, which saw India post a competitive 189-7, then worsened before the hosts had a chance to respond. - Scorecard: England vs India, first T20I, Durham - Got Sky? Watch England vs India live on the Sky Sports app - Not got Sky? Get instant access with NOW - no contract Stokes' absence leaves another vacancy for an all-rounder as well as a skipper in the Test side, with Sam Curran one of the possible options for the former. Despite only recently returning to bowling, he gave a good account of his left-arm seamers, pinning the dangerous Abishek Sharma for 59 while in full flow. He should have repeated the trick by dismissing Shivam Dube at the death, but Jos Buttler's glovework let him down in the drizzle. Curran was hit for six two balls later to rub salt into the wounds, but figures of 1-25 from three overs of brave variations will do him no harm. England started with nine of the players who lost to the same opponents in the T20 World Cup semi-final in March, with the recalled Saqib Mahmood picking up 3-33 as he filled in for the rested Jofra Archer. India overlooked 15-year-old prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi once again but his time could be coming, with Sanju Samson following two cheap dismissals against Ireland by cutting Mahmood's fourth ball to point with just one to his name. England's home series against India fixtures - First T20 (Durham) - Match abandoned - no result. - Second T20 (Saturday July 4) - Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester (2.30pm) - Third T20 (Tuesday July 7) - Trent Bridge, Nottingham (5.30pm) - Fourth T20 (Thursday July 9) - Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol (5.30pm) - Fifth T20 (Saturday July 11) - Utilita Bowl, Southampton (2.30pm) - First ODI (Tuesday July 14) - Edgbaston, Birmingham (11am) - Second ODI (Thursday July 16) - Sophia Gardens, Cardiff (1pm) - Third ODI (Sunday July 19) - Lord's, London (11am) Watch India's white-ball tour of England, from July 1-19, live on Sky Sports. Not got Sky? Stream cricket and more with NOW. [Image text:] TOYOTAA DOPS BUTTLER 63