Defending champions India defeated a spirited Netherlands team by 17 runs on Wednesday. Consequently, they remain unbeaten in the group stage. This victory comes just ahead of their crucial meeting with South Africa in the Super Eights of the T20 World Cup.
India posted a competitive total of 193-6. Subsequently, they restricted the Dutch to 176-7. Spinner Varun Chakravarthy was the star with the ball. He returned impressive figures of 3-14 in Ahmedabad to ensure the win.
However, a tough test awaits the co-hosts at the same venue on Sunday. They face South Africa, who topped a tricky Group D.
Batting Woes Persist
India finished top of their group ahead of arch-rivals Pakistan. Nevertheless, they need to fix holes in their batting. Specifically, the form of opener Abhishek Sharma is concerning. He fell for his third straight duck in the tournament.
“I mean, you can’t say that we have ticked almost all the boxes,” skipper Suryakumar Yadav admitted. “But even if you win, you learn something out of it.”
Abhishek was bowled on the third ball by off-spinner Aryan Dutt. This happened after India elected to bat first at the world’s biggest cricket stadium.
The Shivam Dube Show
India was teetering at 110-4. That is when Shivam Dube hit a counter-attacking 66. He put on a key stand of 76 with Hardik Pandya, who scored 30.
“This is a World Cup and the game gets difficult sometimes,” Dube told reporters. He was named Player of the Match for his all-round performance.
Several batters got starts but failed to capitalize. Ishan Kishan fell for 18, while Tilak Varma made 31. However, Dube kept calm. He hit a few lusty blows, including two sixes and a four off Colin Ackermann. eventually, he reached his fifty off just 25 balls.
The Dutch Chase
In reply, the Dutch openers started cautiously. However, Max O’Dowd was soon bowled for 20 by Chakravarthy. Additionally, Pandya dismissed Michael Levitt for 24.
Bas de Leede and Ackermann attempted to put the chase back on track. They built a stand of 43 runs. But Chakravarthy broke through with his mystery spin. He sent back Ackermann for 23. Then, he bowled Dutt on the next ball.
The ever-increasing run rate forced the Dutch to take risks. Consequently, they lost wickets at regular intervals. Jasprit Bumrah took down skipper Scott Edwards to seal the game.
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