India confirm semifinal berth, defeat Australia by 24 runs to put them on brink of elimination

Kuldeep would snare both Marsh and Maxwell while Hardik Pandya snapped up Marcus Stoinis cheaply as Head still remained unbeaten. He would ultimately fall for 76 as Australia suffered a collapse with Tim David and Matthew Wade both getting dismissed in quick fashion.

India will now take on England in the semifinal match on June 27 in Guyana.

Earlier, Rohit Sharma combined brute force with elegance in his 92 off 41 balls as India amassed 205 for five against Australia on a belter in their final Super Eights fixture of the T20 World Cup.

On the best batting surface of the tournament, Australia put India in to bat and Rohit made the most of the conditions with a sublime knock comprising seven fours and eight sixes including a recording extending 200th in the format. It was the start of something special when Rohit flicked Mitchell Starc for four in the first over of the game.

Virat Kohli (0) at the other end mistimed a pull off Josh Hazlewood in the following over to be caught in the deep.

Walking the talk once again, Rohit never took the foot off the pedal and went hammer and tongs against Starc, whose second over yielded as many as 29 runs, his most expensive in the format. Rohit did bulk of the damage in his 87-run stand with number three Rishabh Pant (15 off 14), who welcomed leg-spinner Adam Zampa into the attack with a six over long-on.

Credit must go to India for not allowing any other bowler to settle into a rhythm. Rohit brought his fifty at end of the fifth over with a single and that was also the fastest of the tournament.

Rohit unleashed a six over extra cover when Marcus Stoinis came into the attack in the eighth over.
Such was the authority of Rohit’s innings that he could choose his spot against all the bowlers of repute. It could have been a well-deserved 100 but Starc came back to remove the India skipper with a yorker.

Suryakumar Yadav (31 off 15), Hardik Pandya (27 not out off 17) and Shivam Dube (28 off 22) also played their part but India could not make the most of the last five overs, scoring only 43 runs for the loss of one wicket.

How can Australia qualify?

Come on, Bangladesh!’ Australia captain Mitchell Marsh said with a cheeky smile at the post-match presentation ceremony after his side lost against India. Couple of matches back, they were unbeaten and flying high but defeats against Afghanistan and India have put Australia on the brink of going back home before the semifinals.

After Australia’s 24-run defeat, India officially sealed their place in the semifinals as toppers of Group 1. Rohit Sharma and Co will now take on England in Guyana in the 2nd semifinal. Who will face South Africa though?

The equation for Afghanistan is simple. Defeat Bangladesh, they create history and reach the semifinals. Even a washout without a result is enough for Rashid Khan’s men.

Australia will be rooting for Bangladesh, but not by a big margin because the Tigers too are still alive. According to ESPNCricinfo, if Bangladesh win by more than 62 runs after scoring 150, then they can overtake the Aussies. Any smaller margin of Bangladesh win, then Australia sneak through.

(With Agency Inputs)