Last Updated: November 06, 2022, 3:18 PM IST
Suryakumar Yadav stunned Zimbabwe with an all-out assault. (AP Photo)
IND vs ZIM T20 World Cup 2022: Suryakumar Yadav slammed an unbeaten 61 off 25 after KL Rahul’s 51 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
KL Rahul peeled off a second successive half-century before Suryakumar Yadav lit up the Melbourne Cricket Ground with his pyrotechnics to propel India to a challenging 186/5 against Zimbabwe in their final Super 12 match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 on Sunday.
Rahul made 51 off 35 while Suryakumar belted an unbeaten 61 off 25 to provide the late flourish.
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Suryakumar was at his best as he produced played jaw-dropping shots with a scoop over fine leg off the final delivery being the best of the lot to help India finish on a high. At one stage, Zimbabwe would have felt confident to limit their opponents under 160 but thanks to the brilliance of SKY, India were able to loot 79 runs from the final five overs.
SKY struck six fours and four sixes during his assault.
India included Rishabh Pant in their playing XI in place of Dinesh Karthik after after their captain Rohit Sharma opted to bat first. Rohit (15) got going with a pair of boundaries before holing out in the deep off Blessing Muzarabani in the fourth over of the innings.
Rahul and Kohli then joined forces to drive the innings forward and the duo added 60 runs in quick time to put them on a solid ground. Kohli looked good again as he got off the mark with a superb flick for four but his innings was cut short by Sean Williams on 26.
That wicket heralded a phase during which Zimbabwe took control in the middle as they removed three India batters for the cost of just 14 runs.
Rahul raised his second successive half-century of the tournament with a straight six but was out the next delivery as he went for another big hit to be caught at long-off with Sikandar Raza making the breakthrough. In walked Pant but an excellent diving catch by Ryan Burl at long-on sent him back quickly on 3 off 5.
Suryakumar and Hardik Pandya then combined to arrest the slide with the former dominating the partnership as he peppered the boundary at the MCG. India have already qualified for the semifinals and a victory today will help them finish at the top spot in Group 2.
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