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Shivam Dube's return to the T20I squad was nothing short of a statement.
Called up as a replacement for the injured Nitish Kumar Reddy, Dube silenced his critics with a match-winning 53 off 37 balls, guiding India to a competitive total of 181/9 in Pune.
India had a shaky start, with Saqib Mahmood running through the top order, taking a triple-wicket maiden that left Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav all dismissed cheaply.
A brief recovery came from Abhishek Sharma and Rinku Singh, but India still found themselves in trouble when Adil Rashid dismissed Sharma, leaving Dube to rebuild.
Playing his first T20I since July 2024, Dube wasted no time. He dispatched Rashid for a six off just his second ball, a clear signal of his intentions.
Known for handling spin, especially during his IPL stint with CSK, Dube was right at home against the veteran leg-spinner.
With the wickets of Rinku Singh and others falling, Dube found a reliable partner in Hardik Pandya, and together, they launched a counter-attack that caught England off guard.
Dube continued to torment Rashid, hitting him for a four and another six in the 14th over. While Hardik went on a rampage, scoring a fifty off just 27 balls, Dube maintained his composure, keeping pace and ensuring India stayed on track.
The pair put together a brilliant 87-run stand, the second-highest for India at the sixth wicket or lower.
When Hardik was dismissed, Dube took responsibility, ensuring he stayed till the end. He reached his fifty off 31 balls, hitting two boundaries against Brydon Carse in the 19th over. His perseverance paid off as he ran India to a solid total, even though he was run out off the final ball.
In the final over of India's innings, Dube was struck on the helmet by a bouncer from Jamie Overton, leading to Harshit Rana coming in as a controversial concussion substitute. But by then, Dube had already done his job.
His performance in Pune was a powerful response to his recent struggles in the Ranji Trophy, where he had been dismissed for ducks in both innings during Mumbai's loss to Jammu and Kashmir.
Dube's critics had been vocal, but on this day, he silenced them with authority. His vital knock not only showed that he could rise to the occasion when it mattered most.