Suryakumar Yadav’s Captivating Knock Propels India to Victory
Suryakumar Yadav was at his captivating best, seamlessly blending power and finesse as he threatened the boundary throughout the match. A fierce sweep for six off Rashid Khan was followed by two mighty maximums down the ground off Azmatullah and Farooqi, with Suryakumar delightfully holding his pose in the follow-through. He reached his fifty off just 27 deliveries before falling on the very next ball, miscuing a shot to Mohammad Nabi at long-off.
Hardik Pandya provided valuable support, smashing two big sixes in his 32 off 24 balls, while Axar Patel contributed a canny 12 off six deliveries towards the end, helping India establish a strong total. These crucial contributions came after Afghanistan had made an impressive start, removing India’s top three batters relatively cheaply.
“Farooqi deceived India captain Rohit Sharma with a slower delivery, having him caught for eight, while Rashid Khan trapped Rishabh Pant for 20 and then removed Virat Kohli for 24 when he picked out the long-off fielder. Kohli’s form remains a concern, as he scored only five runs in three matches during the group stage, struggling for timing apart from one sublime six.”
Nonetheless, this is the blueprint that makes India such a dangerous side as they seek their first T20 World Cup title since the inaugural tournament in 2007 – setting a big total and then unleashing their excellent bowling attack to wreak havoc. Jasprit Bumrah foxed Rahmanullah Gurbaz with a cutter, having him edge behind, and then drew Hazratullah Zazai into a leading edge to the gully, with Ibrahim Zadran also falling to Axar Patel.
Afghanistan often rely on their top order, and once they were dismissed early, India squeezed the rest of the lineup to ensure they fell well short of the target. India will next face Bangladesh in Antigua on Saturday (15:30 BST), while Afghanistan take on Australia in St Vincent that night (01:30 BST).
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