India triumphed over England by 68 runs in the second semi-final of the T20 World Cup 2024 at the Providence Stadium in Guyana on Thursday.
With this victory, India advances to face South Africa in the final of the T20 World Cup, scheduled for Saturday, June 29, in Barbados.
India’s bowlers put the English batters under pressure from the start of their innings. Although England initially seemed strong, scoring 26 runs without losing a wicket, Jos Buttler, who looked promising, was dismissed by Axar Patel on the first ball of the fourth over.
England struggled to recover after losing their captain, with Jasprit Bumrah exacerbating their difficulties by bowling out Phil Salt.
India’s spinners continued to dominate the defending champions. Jonny Bairstow (0 off 3), Moeen Ali (8 off 10), Sam Curran (2 off 4), and Liam Livingstone (11 off 16) all failed to make significant contributions.
Harry Brook showed some resistance with 25 runs off 19 balls, but he was eventually removed by Kuldeep Yadav.
For India, Patel and Kuldeep each took three wickets, while Bumrah claimed two, leading to England being bowled out for 103 runs in 16.4 overs.
In the first innings, India had a shaky start. Virat Kohli, once again struggling in the tournament, was bowled by Reece Topley after scoring just nine runs.
Following Kohli’s dismissal, Rishabh Pant also fell early, scoring only four runs, leaving India at 40-2 in 5.2 overs.
However, India bounced back with a 73-run partnership between Suryakumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma. Sharma completed his half-century but was dismissed by Adil Rashid after scoring 57 runs.
Yadav continued to attack but fell just short of his half-century, scoring 47 runs before being dismissed by Jofra Archer.
India lost wickets in quick succession, including Hardik Pandya (23 off 13) and Shivam Dube (0 off 1), but contributions from Ravindra Jadeja (17 off 9) and Axar Patel (10 off 6) pushed India to a total of 171 in their allotted overs.
For England, Chris Jordan took three wickets, while Adil Rashid, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, and Reece Topley each claimed one.
Playing XIs:
India: Rohit Sharma (capt), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah
England: Jos Buttler (capt & wk), Phil Salt, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley
