India beat Australia by 24 runs in the Super 8 of the ICC T20 World Cup. With this win, India topped their Super 8 group and qualified for the semifinals of the competition.
India were put into bat by the Aussies and the captain Rohit Sharma scored a blistering 92 off just 41 balls with a strike rate of 224.39. Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav made sure India got past the 200 mark with a quick-fire 27 and 31 respectively.
In reply, Australia got off to a decent start as Travis Head and Mitchell March built a strong partnership. Kuldeep Yadav struck with a couple of quick wickets in the middle overs and the Aussies never really recovered. They ended with a total of 181-7 in their 20 overs.
Head scored 76 runs for Australia with Arshdeep Singh the pick of the bowlers for Men in Blue taking 3 wickets.
The misery did not end there for Australia. Afghanistan’s win over Bangladesh meant the ICC Cricket World Cup Champions were knocked out of the tournament at the Super 8 stage.
Rohit Sharma Levels Babar Azams’s Record
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma has equaled Babar Azam’s remarkable record of most wins as captain in T20 Internationals. Win against Australia was Rohit Sharma’s 48th as Indian skipper, which is now joint highest along with Pakistan’s Babar Azam.
However, Rohit Sharma has led India to 48 wins after playing just 60 matches while his Pakistani counterpart Babar Azam managed to achieve the feat in 85 matches.
Rohit Sharma will now have a chance to surpass Babar Azam when India takes on England in the semi-final 2 of the ICC World T20.
India will play England in the semifinal
After qualification for the semi-final secured, Men in Blue’s next assignment will be a knockout clash against defending champions England. The Three Lions have faced bumps en route to their semifinal clash. They lost to arch-rivals Australia in the first group phase and lost to South Africa in their second match of the Super 8.
India will be the favorites to win the semifinal given their recent form. Historically, the nations are level in head-to-head record in the ICC World T20 with both winning 2 matches.
The semi-final clash between India and England will be played on 27 June at Providence Stadium in Georgetown, Guyana. The match will start at 10:30 am local time (8 pm IST).
Mohd Faisal Hakak is a sports author from Kashmir. He likes to keep tabs on the sporting world with a keen interest in football, motorsports, NBA, and other marquee sports. He is a science graduate from Islamia College Srinagar.
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