India defeated England on Thursday at Providence Stadium thanks to Rohit Sharma’s explosive half-century and an outstanding bowling performance, securing their spot in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 final.
In the semi-final, England’s formidable batting team collapsed after chasing a challenging 172-run goal for just 103 runs.
England captain Jos Buttler got his team a respectable start against Axar Patel with a score of 23 from 15 balls, but he was bowled out on the first delivery of the fourth over.
Following that, the reigning champions quickly lost three more wickets, falling to 46/4 in 7.1 overs.
Before Kuldeep Yadav dismissed him in the eleventh over, Harry Brook, batting at No. 5, put up a noteworthy fightback with his 19-ball 25. Brook was still England’s top scorer.
The eighth-wicket partnership between Jofra Archer and Liam Livingstone (11) lasted for 14 runs, with the latter being run out in the fifteenth over.
But when Jasprit Bumrah trapped Archer leg before wicket in the 17th over, his revenge was over. With 21 off 15 balls, he continued to be a valuable member of the England team.
Bumrah took two wickets, while Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav each claimed three for India.
After electing to bat first, India amassed a score of 171/7 thanks to a strong batting combination between Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav.
Virat Kohli, once again, failed to score in double figures as India got off to a rocky start in their innings. With just 19 runs scored in the third over, Reece Topley thoroughly destroyed him.
After getting four runs, wicketkeeper-battler Rishabh Pant was bowled out by Sam Curran, dealing another damage to the previous champions’ batting expedition.
At 40/2 in 5.2 overs, former T20I batting champion Suryakumar Yadav joined captain Rohit Sharma in the middle.
With a superb third-wicket stand, the two batted intelligently and put India in a comfortable position.
Before top-ranked T20I bowler Adil Rashid gave England a much-needed breakthrough by removing India’s captain in the 14th over, Yadav and Sharma took calculated risks and accumulated 73 runs throughout their partnership.
With six fours and two sixes in a 39-ball 57, Rohit Sharma maintained his position as India’s leading scorer.
Jofra Archer’s slower delivery from back of the hand caused Suryakumar Yadav to quit in the 16th over, quickly following in Sharma’s footsteps.
With the aid of four fours and two sixes, he scored 47 in 36 balls.
A one-sided partnership between Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja resulted in 22 runs in 12 deliveries.
Before falling to Chris Jordan in the 18th over, Pandya amassed a quick 23 off 13 deliveries, hitting one four and two sixes.
The next delivery saw Jordan strike once more, sending Shivam Dube packing for a golden duck as India fell to 146/6 in 17.5 overs.
Then came a rapid 24-run partnership between Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja, which concluded with the former’s wicket on the penultimate delivery of the innings.
While Jadeja managed a nine-ball seventeen to stay undefeated, Patel scored ten off just six balls.
Adil Rashid, Reece Topley, Jofra Archer, and Sam Curran each contributed one wicket, but Chris Jordan spearheaded England’s bowling effort with three wickets despite being costly.
It is important to note that the winner of the second semi-final between South Africa and India will play South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2024 final, which is set for June 29 at Kensington Oval in Barbados.
