Image Credit- AFP
India is on a good path to win a global championship. They haven’t occupied the podium as champions for eleven years. Now, only a few hours and a fierce South African team stand between them and glory.
Runs square and behind the wicket are valuable on a pitch like Guyana, where the bounce was low and the speed was slow. This is so that the hitter cannot force the pace if the bowling unit is disciplined enough to hit a solid length and keep the stumps in play. Although England intended to keep India out of half of the outfield, they weren’t always successful; at a strike rate of 192, 69 runs—11 of which were boundaries—came from unwarranted places.
During the powerplay, Rohit scored goals with shots that he had no control over at a strike rate of 133. In T20Is, his career strike rate is 141, to put things in perspective. India has been looking for a difference like this. Don’t wait for the terrible ball to come up to bat. Bat as though every ball is a nasty one.
In the end, Rohit found a place. He had control over 20 of the 26 balls since the fourth over, and he made excellent use of that control to score 40 runs, including two sixes and four fours. He understands that there’s no point in being afraid of risk because it’s a part of T20 cricket.
The way that India’s batsmen manoeuvred within the crease demonstrated their intentions. It was a triumph for even a bowler of Adil Rashid’s calibre to struggle in these conditions, since all bowlers needed to do was hit a length to go for the top of the stumps. However, he bounced back. On the other side of the second rain break, Rashid started to keep a line on off stump, without caring where Rohit and Suryakumar were positioned themselves. As payment, he got the captain of India out for 57 off 39. In his last two overs, Rashid only managed eight runs.
India held Shivam Dube back, thinking the quicks would take control, after Rashid was out of the game by the fourteenth over. Thus, Buttler saw well to insist that Liam Livingstone report for duty, having complete faith in his right arm even in the final moments. The part-time worker ended up with a 4-0-24-0 finish.
Along with Hardik Pandya, India’s spin-bowling all-rounders contributed to their team’s 171 total with two fours and three sixes in the final two overs.
Guyana is conducive to spin. And India immediately stocked their squad with spinners after realising that Guyana would host their semifinal match. Out of them, three made it into the XI. They alternated in bowling jaffas.
What changed things was Axar. He replaced Arshdeep Singh with his first ball after the latter had been thrashed by Jos Buttler for three fours in an over.
Axar took a wicket off the opening ball in each of his first three overs. Once again, Jonny Bairstow opted to stay leg side and was bowled, and Moeen Ali’s England career ended with him possibly not knowing where the ball had gone until he saw it was in Pant’s hand as he smashed the stumps.
When Kuldeep got involved, he tricked Sam Curran and then outwitted Harry Brook, leaving England at 49 for 4. After the 2019 ODI World Cup, England was the team that knocked him out so badly that he disappeared into the white-ball wilderness. Here, he faced an approaching batter and unusual shots as well, but he remained composed. When Kuldeep noticed that Brook was descending to reverse-sweep, he changed the line to leg stump and left him entangled. The ball also avoided the batswing and crashed into the stumps behind because to its flatter trajectory and faster tempo.
As further sign of their impending defeat, England’s last recognised batter, Livingstone, was run-out after a mix-up with the lower order. The defending champions yielded their crown, with six of them making single-digit scores and none of them going past 25.