In their inaugural Super 8 match of the T20 World Cup, India defeated Afghanistan by a commanding 47 runs thanks to a brilliant bowling performance by Suryakumar Yadav, who played courageously on a demanding surface.
Suryakumar Yadav played courageously on a demanding surface before India tightened the noose around Afghanistan with a polished bowling effort in their first Super 8 match of the T20 World Cup on Thursday, winning by 47 runs. Rashid Khan (3/26) improved his ordinary record against India before Suryakumar (53 off 28) played as hard as he could to lead his team to 181 for 8 after India elected to bat on a challenging surface to hit over the line. Afghanistan were never in contention for the run chase and were dismissed for 134 in exactly 20 overs. The Afghan batters’ dubious shot selection contributed to their loss, extending their winless streak against India.
In his second game of the competition, Kuldeep Yadav (2/32) had an effect as well, but Jasprit Bumrah (3/7 in four overs) was once again too strong for the opposition.
On Saturday in Antigua, India will play Bangladesh in their second Super 8 match.
After announcing his intentions with a six and four off Arshdeep Singh, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (11 off 8) took a risky shot against Bumrah in the second over of the innings and was caught behind.
Hazratullah Zazai, who was called into the squad to replace the injured Mujeeb Zadran, was Bumrah’s next victim, as his attempted flip off a cutter from the Indian speed spearhead went right into the safe hands of Ravindra Jadeja at backward point.
Kuldeep, who replaced Mohammed Siraj in the playing eleven, bowled in the middle overs and returned Gulbadin Naib (17) with an incorrect delivery in the eleventh over.
The top scorer for Afghanistan was Azmatullah Omarzai (26 off 20). Afghanistan was unable to regain control of the game as wickets fell throughout the innings.
On a track where the other batters found it difficult to gain momentum, Suryakumar earlier displayed his return to his carefree best, picking the boundaries at will. The other two notable contributors were Hardik Pandya (32 off 24) and Rishabh Pant (20 off 11), who both discovered the boundaries from the very go.
This event, Virat Kohli (24 off 24) reached double digits for the first time, but he was removed just as he was getting settled.
In his first three overs, Rashid (3/26), who had not yet taken a wicket versus India, struck to put pressure on the opposition.
play.
With the ball holding up well on the ground early on, it appeared that playing through the line would be difficult when India decided to bat at the Kensington Oval.
In the third over from Fazalhaq Farooqi (3/33) the captain Rohit Sharma (8) tried to accelerate the scoring rate but found the toe end of his bat and was caught at mid-on.
Following the Powerplay, in which India scored 47 goals to one, Rashid entered the game. In the seventh over, the talented spinner dismissed the fiery Pant. Until Rashid finally got the better of him, the southpaw was not hesitant to use the sweep and bold reverse sweep against the spinners.
In Rashid’s second over, after Kohli was caught at long off, India came under pressure. When the ball went back in quickly and struck Shivam Dube (10), who was caught in front after it slammed into his back leg, Suryarkumar’s series of sweeps against Rashid defused the tension.From at the other end, Surya continued to identify the large hits. Before he made a well-deserved half-century off a six and four off Farooqi, he recklessly blasted a wide full toss from Azmatullah Omarzai to deep square-leg.Hardik then joined in the action and repeatedly smashed the ball into the stands after Surya left. With a powerful blow, he nearly broke the press box window with a straight six off left-arm spinner Noor Ahmed. At the historic location, India ultimately achieved their highest total, proving to be unbeatable in the end.
