Rahul Tripathi’s unbeaten 14-ball 56 went in vain as India suffered their third consecutive defeat at the Hong Kong Sixes 2026 on Saturday, losing to England by a narrow three-run margin in a Bowl semifinal match. India, who succumbed to Pakistan in their campaign opener on Friday, had lost to United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday morning to finish last in Group C.
That pitted India against England in a Bowl semifinal a few hours later. It must be noted that all the third-placed teams advance to the Bowl semifinals at . Unlike in their first two games, India opted bowled to bowl against England.
The Men in Blue made a positive start as Tripathi removed England captain John Simpson in the second over of the match, caught by . But it was opener Martin Andersson’s 13-ball 51 that helped England take control of the game, which was studded with three fours and six sixes.
Andersson retired hurt after completing his fifty, according to the tournament rules. Ed Barnard’s 35 not out and Luke Hollman (13) helped England post 124/2 in six overs. In reply, opener Nitish Rana once again failed to make a mark, his third consecutive flop show in the competition.
, who was brought in as an opener for the first time in the tournament, along with Tripathi stitched together a 74 runs off just 15 balls to revive the Indian innings. However, Shashank failed to get going, falling for 29 runs from nine balls, studded with four sixes and one four.
Captain Krunal Pandya tried his best with a 7-ball 28, but couldn’t take India over the line. Needing 18 runs in the final over, Pandya smashed Nathan Gilchrist for a four and a six off consecutive deliveries to bring the equation down to five runs required from the last ball.
But Pandya managed just one run, as India fell short by three runs.
Batting first, Pandya’s India had a disastrous start, losing Nitish Rana in the second delivery of the game. Rahul Tewatia and Shashank Singh followed suit as India slumped t 14/3 in 1.2 overs.
Tripathi scored 24 at the top before T Natarajan’s late cameo of 14-ball 38 helped India 94/6 in six overs. Pandya contributed with 15 runs. for UAE, Zahid Ali picked up three wickets, while Muhammad Farooq and Mohammed Faraazuddin scalped one wicket apiece.
In reply, UAE romped home in 4.2 overs without losing a wicket. Captain Khalid Shah led from the front with an unbeaten 52 off 14 balls, studded with three fours and six sixes. Shah’s opening partner Ansh Tandon remained not out at 39 at the other end.
India will take on Bangladesh in the 11th-12th Place Play-off match on Sunday at the Mission Road Ground, Mong Kok. The match starts at 7:10 AM IST on November 1. Bangladesh are coming into this game after losing to South Africa earlier on the day.
