India’s explosive batter Suryakumar Yadav’s childhood coach Ashok Aswalkar adviced Men in Blue to play normal cricket when they take on Australia in the 2024 T20 World Cup. In a clash of heavyweights, he said to not experiment too much against the Aussies, who are coming into the game after getting humbled by Afghanistan. The spirited performance from Afghanistan ha left Australia in a peculiar situation. Australia will now step into Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in Saint Lucia to face India in a must-win game on Monday.

As India prepare to take on Australia in the clash of cricketing heavyweights, Aswalkar said the Men in Blue need to play their normal game as they have been playing in their last six matches. Aswalkar also hailed the performance of India’s ace bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who has been in outstanding form in the T20 World Cup. The pacer has picked 10 wickets in just five games.

“Our openers are slowly starting to pick up the pace. If they can step up their game in a match against Australia, then nothing could be better than this for India. Try to play normal cricket, dont don’t do too many experiments. They have to play the way they did in the last five to six matches. They just have to play a normal game against the Australian bowling lineup. Bumrah is special,” Aswalkar told ANI.

India selected four spinners for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, but pace was the major component of their assault in the first stage of the tournament. Talking about India’s decision to take four spinners in the T20 WC, Aswalkar said, “Rohit Sharma answered this question. Rohit knows which combination to take. Kuldeep Yadav is a perfect option for India, his slow bowling on the slow wicket works wonders.”

Suryakumar has been the stalwart for India’s two most recent wins at the marquee event, as he smashed a half-century against Afghanistan. Aswalkar wants Suryakumar to play without pressure as he has been playing in the last matches and advises wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant “not to play the reverse shot.”

“He needs some time. He has hitting power and India have to utilize it somewhere. Rishabh Pant is playing the wrong shots and losing his wicket. Suryakumar, Rishabh and all are performing well. I just advise the wicketkeeper-batter to not play the reverse shot. I want Suryakumar to play without any pressure,” Aswalkar said.

Meanwhile, a spirited Afghanistan humbled the 2021 champions Australia to collect their first-ever win over the cricketing powerhouse. Aswalkar said Afghanistan have the best bowling variations in cricket, Australia took them lightly and they lost the match.

“Underdogs always think to win the match against the big teams. Afghanistan have the best bowlers for variation. Afghanistan bowling can defeat any team in the World Cup, don’t underestimate them in future matches. Australia have a long batting line-up but Afghanistan have their day and they won the match,” he added.

Australia will face the India challenge in their pursuit of a semi-final berth, following their loss against Afghanistan where they suffered a shocking 21-run loss in their penultimate Super Eights fixture, on Monday in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

Currently, India sit at the top of the Group 1 standings with four points while Australia (second) and Afghanistan (third) share two points each with Bangladesh yet to win a Super Eight match.

Suryakumar Yadav is not the world’s no.1 T20I batter without reason. He has been the stalwart for India’s two most recent victories at the 2024 T20 World Cup, as he delivered a second consecutive half-century against Afghanistan, in India’s first Super 8 game. Post-match, Suryakumar Yadav and Axar Patel broke down the game playfully; one which India won comfortably by 47 runs. In particular, the two shared a light-hearted moment about Suryakumar’s interaction with Virat Kohli during the India batting innings.

Suryakumar – fondly known as SKY – was asked by Axar on what advice Kohli had given him during a drinks’ break in the 10th over. Axar explained his curiosity by saying that right after the break, SKY had started slog-sweeping, en route to his 28-ball 53.

“160 was a par score on this wicket (Barbados). But I thought, if I start with a few boundaries and get the momentum going after the break, it will help the next batters,” said SKY.

Axar replied jokingly, “That means you bluffed Virat!”

“No, I didn’t bluff! I was just being myself,” replied Suryakumar, also laughing.

Before the game against Afghanistan, Suryakumar had spoken about being able to adapt to conditions and play in different modes. After a match-winning 49-ball 50 against USA, SKY walked the talk, scoring at a strike rate of over 180 on a difficult Barbados pitch.

Suryakumar Yadav’s flamboyant knock, alongside handy contributions from Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya, took India to 180 in 20 overs, a total that proved to be an uphill task for Afghanistan.

Jasprit Bumrah continued to shine, finishing with figures of three wickets for seven runs in his four overs (4-1-7-3). His tally is up to eight wickets in the 2024 T20 World Cup.

India next face Bangladesh on Saturday, June 22, at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua.

A journalist mistook Suryakumar Yadav as Mohammed Siraj during a presser.© Instagram

The Indian cricket team’s journey in the T20 World Cup Super 8 started with a big win over Afghanistan on Thursday. Despite being challenged at various stages of the match, India emerged victorious almost unscathed. Though Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma could not fire to their potential, Suryakumar Yadav scored a fine half-century with decent support Hardik Pandya. With the ball, Jasprit Bumrah breathed fire while the likes of Arshdeep Singh, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav got success too.

For Afghanistan, Rashid Khan took three and took the wickets of Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant and Shivam Dube. Till the time he was bowling, Indian batters found the going difficult. However, SKY hit him for some boundaries. They even came face to face as Rashid could be seen telling him something. “Stop sweeping me, he says,” Ravi Shastri, former Indian cricket team coach, said on commentary. 

After the win against Afghanistan, India have their remaining matches against Bangladesh (June 22) and Australia (June 24) and they will have to perform well in these to secure a berth in the semifinals.

In the run-chase of 182 runs, Rahmanullah Gurbaz started off well by smoking Arshdeep Singh for a four and a six in the first over. However, in the next over, Jasprit Bumrah got Gurbaz caught by Rishabh Pant behind the wicket for just 11 runs in eight balls. Afghanistan were 13/1 in 1.2 overs.

Halfway through the innings, Afghanistan was 66/3, with Naib (17*) and Omarzai (25*) unbeaten.

Just as Afghanistan was building a partnership, Indian spinners pulled things back in their favour as Kuldeep removed Naib for 17 in 21 balls, with a four and six, while Jadeja dismissed Omarzai for 26 in 20 balls, with two fours and a six. Axar took a fine catch to remove Omarzai. Afghanistan sunk to 71/5 in 11.1 overs.

Bumrah (3/7) and Arshdeep (3/36) were the top bowlers for India. Kuldeep got two while Axar and Jadeja got one each.

Earlier, a fine half-century by Suryakumar Yadav and his 60-run partnership with Hardik Pandya helped India reach 181/8 in their 20 overs against Afghanistan in the ICC T20 World Cup Super Eights Game at Barbados on Thursday.

India needs to defend 182 runs to start off Super 8s with a win.

With PTI inputs

India’s own Mr. 360 Suryakumar Yadav proved yet again why he is the No. 1 T20 batter in the world, scoring a brilliant half-century as the team thwarted the Afghanistan challenge in the T20 World Cup 2024 Super 8 clash on Thursday. Suryakumar came out to bat when the likes of Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant had departed early. The batter orchestrated a brilliant partnership with Hardik Pandya to take India to 181 runs in 20 overs. In the process, Surya also matched a World Record that was held by Virat Kohli.

Courtesy of Surya’s 28-ball 53, India defeated Afghanistan by 47 runs in the match. As a result, the middle-order batter was named the Player of the Match, for the 15th time in the history of T20 international cricket. Incidentally, that’s also the all-time record, held by Kohli. While Surya is now level with the India great on the record, he did so in nearly half the innings.

Most POTM awards in T20Is:

Suryakumar Yadav – 15 (61 innings)

Virat Kohli – 15 (113 innings)

Surya, the world’s No. 1-ranked T20I batter, played his traditional shots, barely leaving an inch on the ground untouched.

“That’s what I have practiced, I enjoy batting from overs 7-15 because that’s the most difficult phase where the opposition bowlers look to control things. I like to take charge in that phase, I enjoy it,” Surya told the broadcasters during the innings break.

After India lost Rohit, Rishabh Pant and Virat Kohli added 43 for the second wicket to somewhat steady the sinking Indian ship before Rashid Khan’s twin strikes left India reeling at 62 for 3.

“I started chewing my gum harder when he (Kohli) got out. I just backed my game and my instincts.

“I have played a lot of cricket with him (Rohit Sharma) and now under him, he understands my game. He knows my game, so he sits back and enjoys it,” Surya said.

India came into the match with a flawless record, having won three games in the group campaign while one match against Canada was washed out. Afghanistan, on the other hand, suffered a 104-run loss to West Indies in their final group match and faced defeat against Rohit Sharma’s team too.

India skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday lauded the team for their comfortable 47-run victory over Afghanistan, attributing the clinical all-round display to better planning which was possible due to extensive knowledge about local conditions. India dishd out a superlative show as they posted 181 for 8 and then returned to dismiss Afghanistan for 134 to register a comfortable 47 run win. “The last two years we’ve played T20s here, so we understand the conditions and planned accordingly. We adapted well and got 180, which was a great effort from the batters. We had class bowlers who defended it perfectly,” Rohit said during the post-match presentation.

“Everyone came in and did their job, that’s critical and we dwell on it. SKY and Hardik’s partnership was critical at that point, we needed someone to bat deep which they did.” Jasprit Bumrah was the standout bowler as he returned with brilliant figures of 4-1-7-3.

“We know Bumrah’s class and what he can do. Important for us to use him smartly regardless of conditions. He’s willing to responsibility and he’s been doing it for years,” Rohit said.

India went with three spinners against Afghanistan but Rohit said they may revert back to a pace-heavy attack depending on the surface on offer and opposition they face in the upcoming matches of the T20 World Cup.

India had employed three pacers and two spinners in the group stages but Kuldeep Yadav on Thursday was included in the playing XI in their opening super 8 match against Afghanistan, making it a three-pronged spin attack.

Asked if India will go with three-spinners combination fom here on, Rohit insisted that they want to remain flexible as far as combination is concerned.

“Have to assess conditions, opposition and based on that we’re open to make changes if required. Felt three spinners were good here, if it’s seamer-friendly next time, we’ll go with seamers.” Losing captain Rashid Khan said his team should start successfully chasing such scores against top teams.

“That was a surface we thought we could chase 170-180. You just go there and how you play. Against bigger teams, we should be thinking we will have to chase such scores,” he said.

Rashid was the best bowler for Afghanistan as he took three wickets for 26 runs and this is one of his better international performances since his comeback post surgery.

“Body is feeling well. I struggled a little in the IPL. I am hitting the areas consistently now. We have enjoyed everywhere we have played. We forget our own skills sometimes. If the conditions are there, we will look to use it,” he said.

Suryakumar Yadav, who was adjudged the Player of the Match, for his 28-ball 53, atributed his success to practice and a clarity of mind.

“I think there’s a lot of hardwork, there are a lot of processes and routine involved in it. I am clear in my mind what I want to do,” he said.

“I think you just need to know your game plan, and just play accordingly. I still remember when Hardik came in to the bat, I told him let’s bat with the same intent. Let’s keep pressing the pedal and keep pushing, in the end very happy with a score of 180.” PTI ATK KHS

Suryakumar Yadav played fearlessly on a testing surface before India tightened the noose around Afghanistan with a clinical bowling performance to script a commanding 47-run win in their opening Super 8 fixture of the T20 World Cup on Thursday. Rashid Khan (3/26) improved his ordinary record against India before Suryakumar (53 off 28) played like he only can to take his team to 181 for 8 after India decided to bat on a surface where it was difficult to hit through the line. Afghanistan were never in the run chase and folded up for 134 in exactly 20 overs. The questionable shot selection from the Afghan batters contributed to their downfall, extending their winless run against India.

Jasprit Bumrah (3/7 in four overs) was too good for the opposition again while Kuldeep Yadav (2/32), playing his first game of the tournament, also made an impact.

India’s next Super 8 fixture against Bangladesh will take place in in Antigua on Saturday.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz (11 off 8), who announced his intent with a six and four off Arshdeep Singh, went for a rash shot against Bumrah in the second over of the innings to be caught behind.

Hazratullah Zazai, brought into the squad in place of the injured Mujeeb Zadran, was Bumrah’s next victim as his attempted flick off a cutter from the Indian pace spearhead went straight into the safe hands of Ravindra Jadeja at backward point.

Kuldeep, who replaced Mohammed Siraj in the playing eleven, operated in the middle overs and sent back Gulbadin Naib (17) with a wrong one in the 11th over.

Azmatullah Omarzai (26 off 20) was the top-scored for Afghanistan. The fall of wickets through the innings did not allow Afghanistan to get back in the game.

Earlier, Suryakumar was back to his nonchalant best and picked the boundaries at will on a track where the other batters struggled to get going. The other notable contributions came from Rishabh Pant (20 off 11), who too found the boundaries from the word go and Hardik Pandya (32 off 24).

Virat Kohli (24 off 24) got into the double digits for the first time in this tournament but was dismissed just when he was getting set.

Rashid (3/26), who had not picked up a wicket against India prior to this game, struck in his first three overs to put pressure on the opposition.

India expectedly opt to bat at the Kensington Oval and the way the ball held up on the pitch early one, it seemed playing through the line will be tough.

Skipper Rohit Sharma (8) tried to push the scoring rate in third over from Fazalhaq Farooqi (3/33) but was caught at mid-on after finding the toe end of his bat.

Rashid brought himself on right after the Powerplay with India reaching 47 for one. The star spinner sent back the dangerous Pant in the seventh over. The southpaw once again was not afraid to employ the sweep and audacious reverse sweep against the spinners before eventually falling to Rashid.

After Kohli was caught at long-off in Rashid’s second over, India felt the heat. Suryarkumar eased the tension with a flurry of sweeps against Rashid before the spinner got his third scalp in the form of Shivam Dube (10), who was trapped in front after the ball turned back in sharply and crashed into his back leg.

Surya kept finding the big hits from the other end. He outrageously whipped a wide full toss from Azmatullah Omarzai to deep square-leg before a six and four off Farooqi took him to a well made half-century.

After Surya’s departure, Hardik then got into the act and hammered the ball into the stands on couple of occasions. His straight six off left-arm spinner Noor Ahmed was all brute power, almost shattering the window of the press box. In the end, India did well to post their highest total at the historic venue which in the end proved to be unassailable.

File image of Suryakumar Yadav from the 2024 T20 World Cup.© AFP

File image of Suryakumar Yadav.© AFP

India vs Bangladesh T20 World Cup 2024 Warm-Up Live Streaming And Live Telecast: Where To Watch Match© BCCI