'Free hits made it easier': Kishan points to Bishnoi's nightmare over after Eng loss

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India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan believes the team needs to improve its approach in the middle overs and adapt better to English conditions after going down to England by four wickets in the second T20I in Manchester.The defeat extended India's winless run in T20Is to four matches. India had lost both games against Ireland before the opening match against England was washed out and then suffered another defeat on Saturday.

India made a strong start with the bat, reaching 65/2 in the powerplay. But the scoring rate slowed after that. The visitors managed only 32 runs between overs seven and 10 to reach 96/2 after 10 overs. Another slowdown came between overs 14 and 17, when India added just 23 runs.Kishan said India need to understand the conditions better and find ways to add more runs during the middle phase of the innings."100%, I mean, obviously, they'll have the best choice of bowling, where to pick up, which bowler to put, which batsman to put. They understand the condition better than us," Kishan told reporters after the match."But at the same time, we are all looking to improve. We are all looking to understand what these guys are doing against us because they have more idea ...

every batter needs to understand, as a team, where we can get those extra 20 runs, whether it's by scoring boundaries or whether you have to target the gaps."So, these are a few things I feel we'll talk as a group, we'll understand, and we'll get better with time."The match turned in the 17th over when Ravi Bishnoi bowled two no-balls at the start of the over. England batter Jacob Bethell, who remained unbeaten on 76 off 46 balls, hit three sixes in the over to swing the chase in England's favour as they reached the target of 191 with one over to spare.Kishan admitted those free hits proved costly but also praised Bethell's innings."We were always in a situation where, we thought we had the game. But getting those free hits made it easier for him to get relief, get the pressure out of him," Kishan said."I think we bowled pretty well. We had our plans, but at the same time, we have to give that credit to Bethell because he took his time, he was in the middle for a very long time and he understood, when to charge the ball and who to charge."We could have done better, maybe not just give him those free balls where he scored two sixes out of it. So, 12 runs and two balls without making any mistakes. It's a big thing in these T20 games because it's a very short format and we might not bowl those extra balls to him next time."Despite the run of defeats, Kishan said the dressing room remains united and focused on improving."Yes, we did not win but I think we have been playing good cricket.

The most important thing is how we realize in each of these games where we can get better," he said."The best part is we are all together. We are all trying to improve. Not winning makes a huge difference in your mindset as well. But I think all of us are mature here who will understand what's going on and where we can get better as a group."Bethell's unbeaten 76, which included five fours and five sixes, guided England to a four-wicket win and a 1-0 lead in the five-match series after the opening game ended without a result due to rain. The left-hander took charge of the chase by scoring 29 runs off Ravi Bishnoi and completed a match-winning half-century.