KATHMANDU: As the Asian giants prepare themselves to take on South Africa in the Men’s T20 World Cup Final, let’s take a look at their journey so far.
After the World Test Championship 2023 and ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, India has ensured a third successive final appearance in the T20 World Cup after sustaining an unbeaten run in the 2024 campaign.
The Men in Blue will be determined to replicate the feat they achieved back in 2007 when they lifted the inaugural Men’s T20 World Cup Trophy, under the leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Let’s take a look at their journey leading up to the Final:
Group Stages
Ireland
India’s T20 World Cup 2024 campaign kicked off in style with an eight-wicket win against Ireland on 5 June at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
Batting first, the Irish could only get 96 runs on the scoreboard, courtesy of a strong performance from the Indian fast bowlers.
Hardik Pandya led the attack scalping 3 wickets in his spell, followed by Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh who picked themselves a couple of wickets each.
India chased the 97-run target in 12.2 overs with Rohit Sharma (52 runs in 37 balls) and Rishabh Pant (36 runs in 26 balls) leading the way with the bat.
Pakistan
The Rohit Sharma-led side edged past their arch-nemesis in a bowler-dominated contest in New York on 9 June.
Pakistan won the toss and chose to bowl first.
The Men in Green bowled India out for just 119 runs with Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf picking up three wickets each, with only Rishabh Pant (42 runs in 31 balls) making a sizable contribution.
Defending a low total, the Indian pacers were back at it again.
Although they struggled to pick up wickets in the initial 10 overs, Jasprit Bumrah (3/14), Hardik Pandya (2/24) and Arshdeep Singh (1/31) sprung into action with a little help from Axar Patel (1/11), stopping Pakistan six runs short.
USA
India registered a convincing seven-wicket win against the co-hosts on 12 June at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium.
An impeccable spell from Arshdeep Singh, where he picked up four wickets for just nine runs, restricted the USA to 110/8 in their 20 overs.
Saurabh Netravalkar posed quite a challenge when he scalped the wickets of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma within the third over.
But anchoring knocks from Suryakumar Yadav (50 runs in 49 balls) and Shivam Dube (31 runs in 35 balls) helped the Men in Blue cross the finishing line with 10 balls in hand.
After a washed-out game against Canada, India qualified for the Super Eights topping Group A with 7 points from four matches.
Super Eights
Afghanistan
Transitioning from the USA to the West Indies for the Super Eights stage of the tournament, India started off against Afghanistan in the Group 1 opener on 20 June at the Kensington Oval in Barbados.
Courtesy of an explosive knock from Suryakumar Yadav (53 runs in 28 balls), supported by Hardik Pandya (32 runs in 24 balls) and Axar Patel (12 runs in 6 balls), India put up 181 runs on the scoreboard.
In response, Afghanistan were bowled out for 134 runs, with Arshdeep Singh and Jasprit Bumrah picking three wickets each, followed by a couple of wickets from Kuldeep Yadav.
Bangladesh
India kept up their momentum in the Super Eights with yet another dominating win, this time over Bangladesh, on 22 June at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.
A quickfire 23 runs off 11 balls from Rohit Sharma set the tone for India.
Virat Kohli (37 runs in 28 balls), Rishabh Pant (36 runs in 24 balls) and Shivam Dube (34 runs in 24 balls) played steady knocks before a blistering 50 off 27 balls from Hardik Pandya powered India to 196/5.
The Men in Blue restricted Bangladesh 50 runs short with Kuldeep Yadav picking up three wickets while Arshdeep Singh and Jasprit Bumrah scalped two each.
Australia
In a rematch of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Final loss, India emerged victorious over Australia and booked their berth for the semi-finals.
Rohit Sharma put on a show at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground with a fiery 92 off 41 balls.
A quickfire 31 runs off 16 balls from Suryakumar Yadav helped India set a 206-run target for the Aussies.
Although Travis Head (76 runs in 43 balls) threatened to ruin India’s party once again, wicket-taking spells from Arshdeep Singh (3/37) and Kuldeep Yadav (2/24) helped their side register a 24-run win.
Semi-Final
England
In the 2022 Men’s T20 World Cup semi-finals, England defeated India decisively with a 10-wicket win.
In 2024, India turned the tables by bowling England out for 103, winning by 68 runs at the Providence Stadium in Guyana.
Batting first, crucial knocks from Rohit Sharma (57 runs in 39 balls) and Suryakumar Yadav (47 runs in 36 balls) helped India set a 172-run target for England.
Defending the total, it was the spinners who drove India to a win, restricting England to 103 runs in 16.4 overs. Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel scalped three wickets each while Bumrah bagged two more.
India will face off with South Africa on 29 June at the Kensington Oval in Barbados for the coveted Men’s T20 World Cup trophy.
ICC
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