'KKR ki lottery lag gayi' - Fans hail Tom Banton's heroics against Pakistan in the first T20I

The three-match Test series between England and Pakistan recently ended at Rose Bowl, Southampton, where hosts emerged victorious lifting the series 1-0. The T20I series between the two nations just kicked off yesterday, but rain again played a spoilsport for the match.

The match was midway at 16.1 overs when it was interrupted and got abandoned eventually. The thing that became the centre of attraction in the game was Tom Banton’s stunning batting skills at Old Trafford, Manchester.

The 21-year-old smashed significant 71 of 42 against Pakistan while the team posted a total of 131 until then. While the English fans couldn’t stop praising the new batting sensation on their side. The Kolkata Knight Riders fans, on the other hand, couldn’t keep calm out of the sheer joy as Banton will be joining them in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League.

Here are some of the best reactions:

What a special talent Tom Banton is.
KKR ki lottery lag gayi 🔥

— R A T N I $ H (@LoyalSachinFan) August 28, 2020

Russel
Narine
Morgan
Tom Banton

This should be the 4 overseas players for #KKR @KKRiders

— SADDY (@king_sadashiva) August 28, 2020

It will be really tough for KKR to keep Tom Banton out of playing 11 after the kind of batting he has shown today.

— Awarapan 🇮🇳 (@KingSlayer_Rule) August 28, 2020

Tom Banton or Jos Buttler? pic.twitter.com/G4Yax3MQbe

— Praveen Kumar (@iamPra98) August 28, 2020

Great innings by Tom Banton 👌😍. Played really well against both pace and spin.
This is a really good sign for KKR 🤘🏻😉. @TBanton18 @KKRiders

— Amir Mushtaq (@amirmushtaq01) August 28, 2020

Tom Banton looking for a spot in 2021 T20 World Cup

In a rain-hit encounter, Banton played a stunning knock of 71 before being dismissed by Shadab Khan. While hosts couldn’t start their T20I on a winning note, the KKR fans have been jumping to have the gem in their bag. The young batsman is looking to find a spot in World Cup 2021 squad for England. While Jason Roy and Bairstow have been the preferred picks as openers for the English team, Banton only got a nod when Roy was ruled out because of an injury.

“I find the middle quite tricky obviously as I’ve not done it really at all. So I’d like to open if possible, I guess the white-ball team at the moment, when it’s at full strength, is so good I’m not going to break into it at the moment. I’m just going to try and keep scoring as many runs and putting the other guys under pressure, and we’ll see how it goes from there,” said Banton about playing in the middle order as quoted by TimesNow.

The first T20I couldn’t fetch the desired results for the hosts, but they are looking forward to the next one slated to commence next Tuesday at the same venue.