Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav led the way as India ousted England on Thursday to reach the T20 World Cup final against South Africa.
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INDIA OUSTS ENGLAND BEHIND SHARMA, YADAV TO REACH FINAL VS SOUTH AFRICA
India ousted England by 68 runs behind the exploits of Sharma and Yadav to reach the final against South Africa after Thursday’s semifinal match.
Furthermore, Sharma’s second half-century helped India compile 171-1.
For his part, Yadav had a vital knock of 47 off 36 balls to blunt England’s pace and spin.
Spinners Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav collaborated for 6-42 through some sharp tuners.
They helped India bowl out England for 103 in 16.3 overs at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Sharma cited vindication for this match after India lost by 10 wickets to England in the 2022 T20 World Cup semifinals.
“It’s very satisfying to win this game. We worked really hard as a unit. To win like that was a great effort from everybody,” he added.
Moreover, Patel was later named as player of the semifinal.
“I’ve bowled in the powerplay in the past many times. Knew the wicket was assisting and didn’t try too many things,” he said.
ENGLAND CAPTAIN BUTTLER SAYS ‘INDIA OUTPLAYED US’ AFTER LOSS
England captain Jos Buttler hailed India, which he described as a team that “outplayed us” throughout Thursday’s match.
“India outplayed us. We let them get 20-25 runs too many on a challenging surface,” Buttler said.
“They had an above-par total and it was always a tough chase,” he added.
England collapsed to 88-9 when Liam Livingstone and Adil Rashid were both run out.
However, Jofra Archer hit 21 off 15 balls before Jasprit Bumrah had Archer leg before wicket to finish off England.
Buttler praised Rashid and Livingstone for bowling well but he thought he could’ve bowled Moeen Ali in their innings “with the way spin was playing.”
“They (India) got some fantastic spinners. But with a good score and their brilliant bowling attack, it was always going to be a tough chase,” he added.
SHARMA DEFENDS OFF FORM VIRAT KOHLI AMID TOURNAMENT STRUGGLES
Meanwhile, Sharma defended superstar teammate Virat Kohli’s off-form during the match amid the latter’s struggles throughout the tournament.
Kohli took his run tally to a disappointing 75 runs in seven matches with a run-a-ball knock of nine
Reece Topley then cramped Kohli for a big shot and hit the top of the leg stump.
“We understand his (Kohli’s) class. Form is never a problem when you’ve played for 15 years, probably saving for the final,” Sharma said.
India can use more of Kohli in the final against South Africa, which remained unbeaten in the tournament.
