Mitchell Marsh survives missed chances by Pant and Arshdeep, but India’s unbeaten streak continues with a 24-run victory over Australia.
India dropped two chances to dismiss Mitchell Marsh, one of which was by wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, leaving captain Rohit Sharma visibly upset. It took a moment of brilliance from Axar Patel to finally dismiss the Australia captain in the T20 World Cup Super Eight game on Sunday, which ultimately turned the tide in India’s favor, securing their spot in the semifinals for the second consecutive time. However, those earlier missed opportunities, particularly the one by Pant, had Sharma fuming on the field.
Rohit Sharma Fumes at Rishabh Pant’s Dropped Catch as India Clinch Semifinal Spot in T20 World Cup
In the all-important game with semifinal qualification at stake, India posted a formidable 205 runs for the loss of five wickets, the joint-highest score against Australia in a T20 World Cup match, thanks to a blistering 92 off 41 balls from Rohit Sharma. Chasing the daunting target, Australia suffered an early blow as opener David Warner edged an outswinger from Arshdeep Singh to first slip in the first over. India had another golden opportunity to put Australia on the back foot in the very next over, but wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant dropped a crucial catch. In the fourth delivery from Jasprit Bumrah, a bouncer led to Mitchell Marsh gloving an attempted pull shot, but the ball ballooned towards backward square leg, only to be missed by Pant.
Pant quickly took off to make an effort to grab the catch but stumbled in his attempt and later pulled out of diving, casually slapping the ball with his gloves in frustration. Bumrah was left in disbelief at Pant’s delayed reaction, while Rohit Sharma was fuming, hurling a mouthful of words in frustration. Marsh narrowly escaped another dismissal in the next over when Arshdeep Singh dropped a difficult return catch.
Mitchell Marsh then ably combined with Travis Head to form an 81-run partnership off 48 balls. However, the stand was broken by a brilliant catch from Axar Patel at deep mid-wicket off Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling, which dismissed Marsh. Australia eventually finished at 181 for seven, suffering their second defeat in this edition of the T20 World Cup, losing by 24 runs. India, on the other hand, continued their unbeaten streak with six straight wins, securing a spot in the semifinals.
