India deliver batting masterclass to keep T20 World Cup hopes alive

Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul shared an opening stand of 140 runs before Hardik Pandya and Rishabh Pant blasted 63 runs off the final 21 balls to help India record the first 200-plus total of the 2021 T20 World Cup

Abu Dhabi: India 210-2, Afghanistan 144-7 - India won by 66 runs

Scorecard

India have kept their hopes of reaching the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup alive with a 66-run demolition of Afghanistan.

Picking up two points in Abu Dhabi, Virat Kohli’s side must now win against Scotland and Namibia and hope the results of Afghanistan and New Zealand’s remaining matches go their way if they are to take the second qualifying spot in Group B.

Afghanistan won the toss, sent India in to bat and immediately regretted their decision, with Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul both starting quickly. Sharafuddin Ashraf and Naveen-ul-Haq, in particular, took a pummelling, with the former going for 16 off one over and the latter 24 off two as India finished the powerplay on 52 without loss.

A productive five overs of strike rotation followed as India continued steadily towards three figures, before the duo once against burst into life in the 12th over, dispatching Naveen for a further 16 runs. Sharma brought up his half-century (37 balls) with the second delivery of that over – his 23rd in T20I cricket – and Rahul brought up his own fifty just five balls later, dispatching Gulbadin Naib over extra cover for four.

^{KL Rahul scored 69 before being bowled by Gulbadin Naib}

No bowler was spared in their 89-ball 140-run first-wicket stand, which included 14 fours and five sixes, before Karim Janat finally made a breakthrough in the 15th over, Sharma picking out Mohammad Nabi at extra cover to depart for 74 (47 balls).

Rahul followed 11 balls later, bowled by Naib for 69 (48 balls) after mis-timing a scoop to become the second wicket to fall for just seven runs.

However, that was the end of Afghanistan’s respite, with Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya blasting 63 runs off the final 21 balls, including five sixes and five fours, to push India beyond the 200 mark. Pandya finished unbeaten on 35 from 13 deliveries while Pant scored 27 not off 13.

In reply, Afghanistan lost two early wickets to slip to 17 for 2 after four overs. Mohammad Shahzad was the first to depart, picking out Ravichandran Ashwin at mid-off off the bowling of Mohammad Shami, before Hazratullah Zazai sliced a delivery from Jasprit Bumrah to Shardul Thakur at mid-on.

^{Ravichandran Ashwin, playing in his first T20I since 2017, posted figures of 2 for 14}

However, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Naib came out fighting, dispatching Shami for 21 runs and Pandya for two fours to finish the powerplay with Afghanistan on 47 for 2 – just six runs behind India at the same stage.

Their partnership yielded 35 runs off 22 balls before Gurbaz was removed by Pandya (bowled Ravindra Jadeja) on the boundary for 19 after his attempted six fell agonisingly short.

Gurbaz’s wicket was the first of three to fall for just 21 runs as Afghanistan’s chase stagnated. Ashwin, playing in his first T20I since 2017, removed Naib (18) lbw in the 10th over before bowling Najibullah Zadran for 11 in the 12th to leave Afghanistan 142 runs short with 8.1 overs remaining.

Janat brought up Afghanistan's hundred with a four at the start of the 17th over and despite the win being long gone, he and Nabi put on a 57-run sixth-wicket stand before the latter was caught by Jadeja in the deep for 35 (bowled Shami) in the penultimate over.

The pair nearly combined for a second wicket off the following ball, Jadeja taking a spectacular diving catch at midwicket but the third umpire deemed the ball to have brushed the ground. However, it made little difference, with Shami removing Rashid Khan (caught Pandya) for a duck one ball later.

Afghanistan closed on 144 from 7, with Shami picking up 3 for 32 and Ashwin the pick of India's bowlers with 2 for 14.

Our coverage of the T20 World Cup is brought to you in association with Dafabet India. For more on Dafabet and to place a bet, click here

Subscribe to The Cricketer for exclusive content every day: The inside track on England's Test tour with George Dobell in Pakistan, award-winning analysis, breaking news and interviews and the only place for in-depth county coverage all year round. Plus: An ad-free app experience at your fingertips. Subscribe to thecricketer.com today for just £1.